On October 15, 2012, the Engelberg Center for Health Care Reform at the Brookings Institution convened a diverse group of experts, including payers, providers, academics, medical device manufacturers, and other relevant stakeholders, for a productive discussion on capturing unique device identifiers (UDIs) in administrative health care claims.
Electronic health care claims data have increasingly played an important role in a range of activities related to drugs and other health care services, including active drug safety surveillance, evaluation of patterns of care and effectiveness, and identification of opportunities for improvements in the quality of care that patients receive. During the initial meeting of the UDI Implementation Work Group, participants emphasized that if UDIs were captured in claims, similar activities may become more feasible for medical devices. However, overcoming the technical and motivational challenges associated with incorporating UDIs into claims is not trivial. Broad stakeholder input will be required and this expert workshop was designed as an initial forum for discussion. Specifically, this workshop provided an opportunity for stakeholders to consider the potential benefits of capturing UDIs in claims, associated technical challenges, and appropriate policies to support consistent UDI reporting in claims.