Can a hospital charge for the waste of a medication when they have used a partial vial of a drug and there is not another patient scheduled who could receive the same drug?
Hospitals are encouraged to schedule patients in such a way that the hospital can use the drug most efficiently, however, if the hospital must discard the remainder of a single use vial after administering part of it to a Medicare patient, the provider may bill for the amount of drug discarded along with the amount administered. To clarify, coverage of discarded drugs applies only to single use vials. Multi-use vials are not subject to payment for discarded amounts of drug. An itemized bill should be submitted with the claim to verify how the drug was supplied. The claim should also include the amount of drug administered and the amount of drug “wasted” by referencing the appropriate JW modifier which signifies the “Drug Amount Discarded/Not Administered to Any Patient” as directed in the CMS Manual 100-04, Chapter 17, Subsections 40. Reporting the JW modifier is not required. Date Posted: 09/15/2005, Date Reviewed/Revised: 11/30/2009 Go to Top • What information is needed in the medic
