An Important Tool to Understand Durable Medical Equipment and Supply Use in Children

Abstract

Functional impairments affect nearly one-quarter of US children. When children experience functional impairments, health and well-being are often substantially affected by nonpharmacologic supports, which can be as common as corrective lenses for poor vision or as critical as a tracheostomy and ventilator for respiratory failure. So-called durable medical equipment is defined by the US Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) as meeting 5 criteria: (1) durability, ie, withstanding repeated use; (2) used for a medical reason; (3) used in the home; (4) expected to last 3 years; and (5) typically only useful to someone who is sick or injured. Medical supplies are frequently essential as well, eg, suction catheters to maintain tracheostomy patency, tubing to deliver airflow from the mechanical ventilator to the patient, diapers for incontinence, parenteral feeding supplies, and syringes.Other researchers have used HCPCS codes to characterize health and resource use in specific conditions more comprehensively. However, to our knowledge, there are no other examples of an exhaustive categorization of HCPCS codes into clinically relevant and recognizable classifications.Important future work should establish the reliability and validity of these classifications. Since the authors report that no DMES were excluded even if predominantly used by adults, these