Increase Quality of Care Archives - Page 14 of 17

Kidney Patients Join Industry In Opposing CMS’ Dialysis Star Rating System

Hannah Bracamonte2024-03-29T02:08:05+00:00August 8th, 2014|Categories: 5-Star Ratings, Press|

Kidney patients have joined the fight against the Medicare star-rating program for dialysis facilities, and they’re making the same arguments as industry. Patient advocates say that the bell curve nature of the program will confuse patients, especially those in poor areas; the program is inconsistent with the existing dialysis Quality Incentive Program; and CMS should have sought feedback from patients and providers before forcing the program on them

DPC Expresses Concern about Five Star Ratings for Dialysis Facility Compare

Hannah Bracamonte2024-03-29T02:08:05+00:00August 7th, 2014|Categories: 5-Star Ratings, Comment Letter, Quality Incentive Program|

Dialysis Patient Citizens Critical of Dialysis Facility Compare’s Five-Star Rating System

Hannah Bracamonte2024-03-29T02:08:05+00:00August 7th, 2014|Categories: 5-Star Ratings, Press|

In a letter to the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services’ Center for Clinical Standards and Quality, Dialysis Patient Citizens expressed concern about the implementation of Dialysis Facility Compare’s new five-star rating system.

New Medicare Rule for Dialysis Facilities Brings Changes to “Pay for Performance” Formula
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New Medicare Rule for Dialysis Facilities Brings Changes to “Pay for Performance” Formula

Hannah Bracamonte2024-03-29T02:08:05+00:00July 1st, 2014|Categories: Get Involved, Quality Incentive Program, Take Action|

Last week, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) released its Proposed Rule specifying how dialysis facilities will be paid in 2015 and beyond. Most of the proposed changes relate to the Quality Improvement Program for dialysis. The Quality Improvement Program (QIP) sets performance standards for each clinic and penalizes clinics that do not meet or make progress toward the standards by cutting their payments by up to two percent. The purpose is to incentivize providers to do a better job by tying their pay to performance. This year’s rule proposes several changes including new measures related to: patient [...]

Quality Incentive Program in July
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Quality Incentive Program in July

Hannah Bracamonte2024-03-29T02:08:05+00:00June 30th, 2014|Categories: Article, Quality Incentive Program|

The Center for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) has an ongoing quality incentive program, the first of its kind, for End Stage Renal Disease (ESRD) care. The quality incentive program, or QIP, is intended to improve the care provided to ESRD patients by paying dialysis facilities based on the quality of care they deliver. If a facility fails to meet certain performance standards, they may receive a lower performance score, which results in lower payments to the facility. Each July, CMS releases a proposed rule with changes they suggest for the following year’s ESRD QIP. This rule is published online [...]

DPC Signs on to Letter Supporting Increased NIDDK Kidney Research Funding

Hannah Bracamonte2024-03-29T02:08:06+00:00April 4th, 2014|Categories: Comment Letter, Dialysis Funding|

Dialysis Reimbursements Stabilized by Protecting Access to Medicare Act

Hannah Bracamonte2024-03-29T02:08:06+00:00April 2nd, 2014|Categories: Article, Dialysis Funding, Immunosuppressive Drug Coverage|

This week President Obama signed the Protecting Access to Medicare Act, which contained some provisions favorable to dialysis patients. The primary purpose of the legislation was to stabilize Medicare payments to physicians, but Congress also used the opportunity to stabilize reimbursements to dialysis facilities. A large cut that had been scheduled to take effect in 2016 has been replaced by smaller, fixed-amount cuts that afford providers more certainty about revenues in coming years. This new payment formula will encourage providers to renew expiring leases on dialysis facilities and continue to invest in improved kidney care infrastructure. Another provision further delays addition [...]

DPC Advocates Fly to Washington for 2014 World Kidney Fly-in
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DPC Advocates Fly to Washington for 2014 World Kidney Fly-in

Hannah Bracamonte2024-03-29T02:08:06+00:00April 1st, 2014|Categories: Article, Dialysis Funding, Improve Access to Care, Promote Financial Security|Tags: Advocacy Day|

DPC advocates flew to Washington, DC for our 2014 World Kidney Day Fly-in. Twenty-six patients and family members were joined by 19 provider representatives from 24 states. Advocates conducted 94 meetings with Members of Congress and their staff. This year, we asked Congress to protect funding for the Medicare ESRD program and to open Medicare Part C to people on dialysis. Take a look at these pictures for the full story. The patients in the these pictures are our most active Patient Ambassadors. If you are interested in becoming a strong advocate for people with kidney disease, join the Patient Ambassador program! [...]

We Need to Hear From You!

Hannah Bracamonte2024-03-29T02:08:07+00:00February 7th, 2014|Categories: Article, Immunosuppressive Drug Coverage, Increase Quality of Care, Treatment Options|

DPC is currently working on two initiatives that require your input! First, the National Quality Forum is conducting a study of "Person-Centered Care" and is looking for patient input. DPC has volunteered to collect patient viewpoints on this subject, and we are inviting our members and other dialysis patients to share your experience with and insights into the care you've received. The National Quality Forum is an organization that endorses the standardized healthcare performance measures that are used by Medicare and other insurers to monitor quality. Its goal in this project is to figure out how to assess whether care is person-centered, which may [...]

Patient Outcry Draws a Two-Year Reprieve From Dialysis Cuts
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Patient Outcry Draws a Two-Year Reprieve From Dialysis Cuts

Hannah Bracamonte2024-03-29T02:08:08+00:00December 1st, 2013|Categories: Article, Care Coordination, Dialysis Funding, Treatment Options|

The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) acknowledged patient concerns by delaying for two years its planned cut to the Medicare End Stage Renal Disease (ESRD) program. The Medicare agency’s decision didn’t give dialysis patients everything we asked for, but it does mean that nearly $2 billion slated to be cut from kidney care in 2014 and 2015 will remain available to treat patients. However, it also means that patient advocates must be vigilant for any signs that access to care is shrinking as providers anticipate cuts now scheduled to take effect in 2016. The Medicare ruling came in the [...]

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