Home dialysis costs vary between clinics

[okarol]

Home dialysis costs vary between clinics

5/26/2009 12:22:12 PM

Six dialysis providers reported lower costs per treatment to provide home dialysis than to provide in-center dialysis, but the amount by which home dialysis costs were lower varied widely, according to a report released by the Government Accountability Office. The report was required by the Tax Relief and Health Care Act of 2006 to assess the costs of home dialysis treatments and training. GAO said it examined the extent to which the costs of home dialysis differ from the costs of dialysis received in a facility and CMSs plans to account for home dialysis costs in the expanded bundled payment. GAO obtained information from CMS, the U.S. Renal Data System, ESRD experts, and self-reported cost information from six dialysis providers.

According to the report, some fear that the way CMS is considering accounting for the costs of home dialysis in the expanded bundled payment might not encourage providers to offer home dialysis, as the agency expects.

Click to read the full report and summary. http://www.gao.gov/new.items/d09537.pdf

http://www.nephronline.com/features.asp?F_ID=438

[Wallyz]

Frustrating. The real cost benfits have to do with hospitalization rates and complications, both of which are significantly lower with home hemo dialysis.