Care Coordination Archives - Page 5 of 8 - Dialysis Patient Citizens

Dialysis Patients Outraged by CMS Move Giving Insurers Illegal Veto Power Over Access to Private Coverage

Hannah Bracamonte2024-03-29T01:13:41+00:00December 19th, 2016|Categories: Access to Transplant, Care Coordination, Charitable Premium Assistance, Legal Defense, Medigap Coverage, Press Release|

Dialysis Patient Citizens says CMS rule tacitly allows insurers to discriminate based on patients’ health condition Washington, D.C. – Advocates for dialysis patients are outraged by an interim final rule issued late yesterday by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) that could force patients off their current health plans and jeopardize their access to care. The rule, which CMS wrote with the stated purpose of ensuring that dialysis patients receive accurate information about their health coverage options, instead empowers insurers to prevent those patients from receiving charitable premium assistance that makes their health insurance affordable. “The administration is [...]

Dialysis Patient Act Reported Favorably out of the House Ways & Means Committee

Hannah Bracamonte2024-03-29T01:50:28+00:00September 9th, 2016|Categories: Article, Care Coordination|

In a health subcommittee hearing on September 8, the House Ways & Means Committee reported the Dialysis Patient Act (H.R. 5942) favorably out of committee. This, along with the ESRD Choice Act (H.R 5659), now have the opportunity to reach the House floor for a vote. In the most recent issue of The Kidney Citizen, personalized postcards were included for you to mail to our office to deliver to your legislators on the Dialysis Patient Act. Please take a moment to sign your name, and drop those postcards in the mail for us to pass along on your behalf.

ESRD Choice Act Moves out of Committee with Unanimous Support

Hannah Bracamonte2024-03-29T01:50:28+00:00August 11th, 2016|Categories: Advance Patient Choice, Care Coordination, Medicare Advantage|

Dialysis Patient Citizens (DPC) hailed the introduction of H.R. 5659 as the latest in a series of milestones toward opening Medicare Advantage (MA) enrollment to end-stage renal disease (ESRD) patients. With bi-partisan introduction by Reps. Jason Smith (R-MO), John Lewis (D-GA), Gus Bilirakis (R-FL), Kurt Schrader (D-OR) and Tom Marino (R-PA), this legislation is a momentous step forward to providing dialysis patients increased access to insurance. “As a dialysis patient of 5 years, I am fortunate to have secondary insurance to cover what Medicare does not, however I know many patients in my facility don’t have that luxury. Providing dialysis patients access [...]

New Legislation Introduced to Improve Dialysis Patient Care

Hannah Bracamonte2024-03-29T01:50:29+00:00July 3rd, 2016|Categories: Advance Patient Choice, Care Coordination|

The Dialysis PATIENT Act (Patient Access To Integrated care, Empowerment, Nephrologists, and Treatment), S. 3090, recently introduced by Senators Heller (R-NV) and Nelson (D-FL). It follows introduction of the House version (H.R. 5506) the previous week by Reps. Young (R-IN), Blumenauer (D-OR), McMorris Rodgers (R-WA) and Cardenas (D-CA). The Dialysis PATIENT Act would permit dialysis organizations to accept capitated payments to cover all of an ESRD patient's Medicare expenditures in return for coordinating care for their renal disease and other comorbidities. The program would be voluntary for patients and provide access to an expanded clinical team that would “quarterback” their care. [...]

Dialysis Patient Citizens Applauds Introduction of Dialysis PATIENT Demonstration Bills

Hannah Bracamonte2024-03-29T01:50:29+00:00June 27th, 2016|Categories: Advance Patient Choice, Article, Care Coordination, Dialysis Funding|

Bipartisan, bicameral legislation mandating a new Medicare demonstration of integrated care for ESRD patients will help spread best practices for treating this population, says beneficiary advocacy group Dialysis Patient Citizens (DPC). “As an in-center hemodialysis patient of 41 years, I am well aware of the multiple health issues that a large percentage of my fellow patients have to cope with on a daily basis. Coordinating their care among health providers would lead to better outcomes for patients and reward providers for optimal care with fewer dollars spent overall,” said Jack Reynolds, DPC’s president and a dialysis patient from Carlisle, Iowa. A [...]

DPC Hosts Successful Advocacy Day
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DPC Hosts Successful Advocacy Day

Hannah Bracamonte2024-03-29T01:50:29+00:00April 30th, 2016|Categories: Article, Care Coordination, Medicare Advantage|Tags: Advocacy Day|

After weeks of planning, Dialysis Patient Citizens welcomed 30 patients and family members to Washington, D.C. to meet with their legislators on a beautiful spring day in April for our annual advocacy day. As you may know, last year our advocates were snowed in so we were very grateful for the warmer temperatures this time around! The patient ambassadors who attended this year’s advocacy day traveled from 20 different states and had experience with all modalities; transplant, in-center hemodialysis, home hemodialysis and peritoneal dialysis. We were also fortunate to welcome 15 partners in care; nurses, social workers and facility administrators [...]

DPC Sends Comment Letter on Chronic Care Working Group Document

Hannah Bracamonte2024-03-29T01:50:30+00:00February 11th, 2016|Categories: Care Coordination, Medicare Advantage|

A document released by the Senate Chronic Care Working Group in December contains several policy proposals for the care of end stage renal disease (ESRD) patients. DPC’s most recent e-newsletter outlined the proposal’s topics, which include opening Medicare Advantage plans to dialysis patients, and making Special Needs Plans permanent to better coordinate care. DPC recently submitted a letter commenting on these proposals. DPC supports the proposal to allow ESRD patients to enroll in Medicare Advantage (MA) plans without restrictions. Current guidelines prevent ESRD patients enrolled in traditional Medicare to enroll in Medicare Advantage plans. DPC encourages the working group to share comments they may receive [...]

Is This the Future of ESRD Care? A New Program Goes the Extra Mile for Dialysis Patients

Hannah Bracamonte2024-03-29T01:50:30+00:00February 1st, 2016|Categories: Advance Patient Choice, Article, Care Coordination|

By, Jackson Williams, Government Affairs Director for Dialysis Patient Citizens For more than a decade, officials in Washington, DC have been experimenting with ways to reorganize Medicare to deliver better care at lower costs. Several of these “demonstration projects” have involved ESRD patients. Now, the largest such program for dialysis patients has kicked off at 13 locations across the U.S. It’s called the ESRD Seamless Care Organization, or “ESCO,” model. This article describes what one of these projects, Philadelphia-Camden Integrated Kidney Care, is doing to improve care for its patients. Philadelphia-Camden Integrated Kidney Care covers about 2,000 patients at DaVita clinics in the [...]

Paper from Senate Group Focuses on Improving Access to Healthcare

Hannah Bracamonte2024-03-29T01:50:30+00:00January 19th, 2016|Categories: Article, Care Coordination, Improve Access to Care, Medicare Advantage|

A recent document released by the Senate Chronic Care Working Group contains several policy proposals relating to the care of end-stage renal disease (ESRD) patients. The working group was formed last year under by Senate Finance Committee as a way to explore potential bipartisan policy changes to improve health care. DPC was pleased to see that committee discuss many of our our policy priorities including: dialysis patient access to Medicare Advantage Plans, Telehealth for dialysis patients and the desire to make the successful Special Needs Plans permanent to better coordinate care for dialysis patients. Currently, patients who are eligible for [...]

2015 Year in Review

Hannah Bracamonte2024-03-29T01:50:30+00:00January 19th, 2016|Categories: 5-Star Ratings, Access to Transplant, Article, Care Coordination, Charitable Premium Assistance, Dialysis Funding, Innovation, Medicare Advantage|Tags: Annual Accomplishments|

Happy New Year! In 2015, DPC leadership and its strong patient advocacy efforts at the state level fought to: prevent dramatic cuts to dialysis funding in Alabama and Illinois and preserve charity payments for dialysis patient premiums. Other highlights include: The opportunity for DPC CEO Hrant Jamgochian and board member Bob Lee to testify in front of the Oregon insurance commissioner on the discriminatory language found in two private insurance plans that would limit coverage for ESRD patients. The commissioner ruled against the language. DPC board member Danny Iniguez discussed health disparities in kidney disease at the National Black Caucus [...]

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