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The Bundled Payment for Dialysis
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 As many of you are already aware, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services recently released their proposed rule on how reimbursement for dialysis care will change. DPC will hold a call this week on November 5, at 3:30p.m., Eastern time to educate patients on how the proposed changes to the payment for dialysis under Medicare may impact the care they receive. If you are a current dialysis patient or family member and are interested in attending this call, please REGISTER TODAY!
On October 23, CMS held a town hall meeting at its headquarters in Baltimore, MD and DPC Executive Director, Chad Lennox along with other panel representatives spoke on behalf of dialysis patients. Panel representatives asked Medicare officials to further consider the impact to patients when changing dialysis reimbursement. Each panel member was allotted five minutes to speak. Read Chad’s comments.
DPC will provide official comments to CMS by December 16th. If you are interested in providing individual comments to CMS, please visit our website for more information.
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Patient Connection - Draft ESRD Bundle
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 As was discussed in the article above, “CMS Releases Proposed Payment System”, the draft ESRD Bundled Payment system could affect how your dialysis is provided.
DPC wants to ensure that we answer our members’ questions concerning the “bundle.” If you have questions or concerns about the bundle, we want to hear them. We’ll do our best to provide the answers in a timely manner.
> Submit your questions
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Health Care Reform Update
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 As Congress looks ahead to their approaching target adjournment date and the Thanksgiving holiday, both the House and the Senate are working to prepare health care reform bills to be voted on in each chamber. With the Senate Finance Committee’s passage of its proposed legislation last month, all five committees of jurisdiction have now passed versions of health care reform bills.
The Senate Finance bill is estimated to cost $829 billion, provide insurance coverage to 29 million more Americans by 2019 and reduce federal budget deficits by $81 billion over the next ten years. It would require individuals to buy health insurance and would offer payment subsidies to some to help pay for it. Insurance companies would also face new regulations, including a ban on coverage denials for people with pre-existing conditions. The legislation would also reduce spending on Medicare and other government health programs by about $400 billion over the next decade.
> Read More
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Education Now Available in Spanish
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 Hispanics are twice as likely to develop kidney failure when compared with the general population. Patients who are at risk or have ESRD are at a further disadvantage when most education is not available in their native language, so DPC has made several of its educational documents available in Spanish. Topics include, CKD risk factors such as diabetes and high blood pressure, controlling your phosphorus, anemia, potassium and more.
We will to continue to expand the resources available in Spanish.
> Kidney Health Documents in Spanish
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Updated "Power of Iron"
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 DPC and Fresenius Medical Care (FMC) recently collaborated to produce an updated version of The Power or Iron. Available in English and Spanish, the Power of Iron is an educational booklet designed to provide important information to dialysis patients about anemia and the possible steps to prevent or control anemia. Beneficial to both new dialysis patients and those who have been on dialysis for years, the booklet also provides a glossary of key terms any dialysis patient would need to know, including hemoglobin and ferritin.
DPC is proud our members were able to collaborate on this project and to provide direct patient input. To receive a copy of The Power of Iron, contact DPC at dpc@dialysispatients.org or 1.866.877.4242.
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Anniversary of ESRD Medicare Benefits
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 Before End Stage Renal Disease (ESRD) patients were covered under Medicare, the opportunities and outcomes for dialysis patients were not the same as they are today. A dialysis patient’s chances of long-term survival or a normal lifestyle were slim.
In 1971, to demonstrate the challenges that dialysis patients faced, Shep Glazer, the former Vice President of the National Association of Patients on Hemodialysis which later became the American Association of Kidney Patients (AAKP), elected to receive dialysis on the floor of the U.S. Congress in an attempt to convey to Congress the needs of ESRD patients. The treatment was observed by the House Ways and Means Committee.
> Read More
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Easy Holiday Donations
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 GoodShop by GoodSearch is a website that enables you to donate to the charity of your choice when you are shopping at a number of online realtors including Amazon, Ebay, Macy’s, The North Face, and many more. It easy to use and many stores offer additional coupons through the GoodShop website.
The process is very simple. Here are step by steps instructions to follow:
- Go to GoodShop’s website, and type in Dialysis Patient Citizens under ‘Who Do You Support?’ Remember to type the whole name and not just DPC.
- Once you have entered Dialysis Patient Citizens, you click verify, and you will be directed to a long list of stores that will donate a percentage of your purchase to DPC.
- Click on the store where you would like to shop online.
- Click the yellow button that says GoodShop This Store.
Shop!
- Once you checkout, a percentage of you purchase will automatically be donated to Dialysis Patient Citizens.
If you like to shop online, this is an easy way to make a contribution to our organization without any extra hassle.
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In this issue:
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- Proposed Payment System
- Patient Connection
- Health Care Reform Update
- Spanish Education
- Power of Iron
- ESRD Anniversary
- Holiday Donations
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Related Links
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> HOT NEWS
> PATIENT CONNECTIONS
> EDUCATION
> RESOURCES
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Email Congress
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Please take a minute to send your Members of Congress an email asking them to support kidney patients.
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Email State Lawmakers
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Many kidney care reforms will take place at the state level of government, so it's important to start educating your state legislators about kidney disease.
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Corporate Partners and Friends
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Thank you to our Corporate Partners and Friends who are dedicated to the enhancement of quality of life and quality of care for all dialysis patients.
> Read More
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