Short Info: HBC (Hungary)

Due to language limitations, I have relatively little knowledge about the Hungarian system. But thanks to a long-lasting participation of Hungarian experts in PCS/E conferences,1 some of texts on the HBC system were also made available in English.

The first Hungarian DRG projects date back to 1986. In 1993, an HBC-based remuneration was introduced.2 There were 467 groups defined.3 As in many other countries, the first DRG case lump sums introduced in Hungary were initially applied using hospital-specific base rates.4 – Version 5.0 of 2005 comprised 796 HBCs.5

In 2006, for several chemotherapy schemes 16 HBCs based on therapy cycles were introduced. Within such an HBC, chemotherapy can be initiated in accordance with distinct protocols. The cost weight is identical for all protocols. It refers to a treatment cycle (and not to the whole treatment case). Also, it does not depend on whether the patient is treated inpatient or outpatient. Expected length of stays and trimpoints, as well as number of phases per cycle depend on the protocol chosen.6