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The Renal Healthcare Association plays a vital role in shaping healthcare policy for dialysis and ESRD patients and future comprehensive kidney care delivery models. We work with lawmakers and regulators to promote and preserve the interests of independent, regional, and community-based dialysis providers. The Annual Day on the Hill program allows kidney care professionals and their patients to join us for active advocacy.
Day on the Hill 2023
RHA members took to Washington, DC, to meet with elected officials during the 2023 Day on the Hill. The meetings included a call out of the current state of crisis, including supply and labor cost increases, CMS increase of ESRD PPS base rates, and a rise in facility closures.
Ahead of the CY 2024 ESRD PPS regulation release, RHA urges CMS to implement the priorities below to help protect access to life-sustaining dialysis treatments for our nation’s highly vulnerable ESRD patients. Day on the Hill participants actively sought Congressional support for these advocacy efforts.
- Allow for the inclusion of bad debt from Medicare Advantage (MA) patients on Medicare cost reports.
- Improve the low-volume payment adjustment (LVPA) and establish a safety net adjustment to more effectively target facilities most in need of additional financial support to deliver high-quality care.
- Revise the ESRD Treatment Choices (ETC) Model participation requirements to exclude small, independent, and hospital-based dialysis clinics from the Model unless they voluntarily elect to participate.
- Provide more appropriate reimbursement for the actual costs of providing and growing home dialysis services.
- Establish an ESRD market basket forecast error adjustment policy to protect providers from underestimations of market basket increases.
- Reduce the Outlier Payment Adjustment amount from 1 percent to 0.5 percent to increase reimbursements to dialysis providers under the ESRD PPS.
- Reform the administration of the Transitional Drug Add-on Payment Adjustment (TDAPA) and Transitional Add-on Payment Adjustment for New and Innovative Equipment and Supplies (TPNIES).
See the
CY2024 Pre-Rulemaking Letter shared on the Hill for more details on these efforts.
Thank you to all who participated this year, and we look forward to sharing an update on these advocacy efforts and more in the future.
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