Medicare Releases Proposed Cuts to ESRD Bundle

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services has proposed a rule to update payment policies and rates under the ESRD Prospective Payment System for dialysis services for 2014. It would reduce the composite rate in the ESRD bundle by 12%. The cut would actually amount to 9.4%, because the kidney community would receive a 2.6% increase based on the market basket analysis for 2014. The rule also proposes changes to the ESRD Quality Incentive Program: adopting five new clinical and reporting measures, continuing to use six existing measures, revising two measures, and expanding one measure.