Sight Sciences announced that the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) has established a new direct practice expense supply code for the single-use TearCare SmartLids component of the TearCare System.

CMS maintains a database of direct practice expense items and values to provide validated information about the resources and costs required to perform procedures reported with CPT codes.  As part of its annual update to this database in the CY 2027 Medicare Physician Fee Schedule (PFS) Final Rule, CMS established supply code SD397 for the TearCare SmartLids component, with an assigned price of $1,000 effective January 1, 2027, the company said in a press release. 

According to Sight Sciences, TearCare SmartLids adhere to the tarsal plates of the upper and lower eyelids of each eye and deliver a software-controlled therapeutic temperature to melt meibomian gland obstructions that cause meibomian gland dysfunction while allowing patients to blink during treatment. TearCare SmartLids are used to perform the thermal adaptive gland procedure reported with CPT code 0563T for bilateral evacuation of meibomian glands using heat delivered through wearable, open-eye eyelid treatment devices followed by manual gland expression.

According to the company, CPT 0563T remains carrier-priced, and the new supply code does not establish a national Medicare payment rate or separate reimbursement for SmartLids. Payment determinations remain subject to applicable payer coverage and reimbursement policies.