Dialysis services have recently been highlighted as a major growth area under the new Patient Driven Payment Model (PDPM)
both financially and clinically — especially as reimbursements are recalibrated for higher acuity patients.
In July, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) rolled out the End-Stage Renal Disease (ESRD) Treatment Choices (ETC) model, a plan that would increase dialysis treatment reimbursements.
Operators and third-party dialysis companies have diligently prepared for both payment shifts,
with technological innovations involving upgraded bedside dialysis units and increased staffing and training to help partners provide improved care for residents.
Concerto Renal Services. for example, announced it that it’s currently in the fourth of six consecutive weeks of new unit openings, welcoming Bella Terra Morton Grove in Illinois as the latest of Concerto’s SNF dialysis partnerships.
On the heels of these increased partnerships, Concerto chief executive officer Shimmy Meystel described an uptick in higher acuity skilled nursing partners throughout the calendar year 2019, as well as just a few months into PDPM.
“Most of our operator partners have been preparing for PDPM for some time, which has meant reorienting many of its internal processes the last year to better prepare its staff and systems for higher acuities,” Meystel said. “We’re along for the ride in that respect, as our partners depend on us to assist them with the transition.”
Check out the full write up of this article from Skilled Nursing News
Nursing Home Dialysis Demand Drives Post-PDPM Push to Specialty Services