By Bill Peckham
Today I was asked over lunch, by a dialyzor I've know through the dialysis-support listserv for 13 years, what the bundle was all about and I didn't know where to start. The proposed rule to expand the dialysis payment bundle is beyond my ability to explain. The more I try to understand it, the more I find to understand, the less sure I am of what I know. Where's a dialyzor to turn?
Tomorrow (Thursday) CMS is holding an Open Door forum:
Special Open Door Forum [ODF]: End Stage Renal Disease [ESRD] Prospective Payment System [PPS] Proposed Rule Overview will be held on Thursday, October 15, 2009 from 3:30pm-5pmET. During this ODF, CMS staff will highlight the key features of the proposed ESRD PPS Proposed Rule including composition of the bundle and basis for the proposed unit of payment, data sources used in developing the system, proposed patient-level and facility-level case mix adjusters, proposed outlier policy and proposed market basket. This call is Conference Call Only. If you wish to participate dial 800-837-1935 Conference ID 26811397. Discussion materials will be available to download at http://www.cms.hhs.gov/ESRDPayment/
The discussion materials are a 41 slide PowerPoint which NephrOnline posted (PDF link).
I am planning on calling in and plan to live blog the call. Hopefully by the end I'll be able to explain what the bundle is all about.
Bill, on behalf of Advocates4QualtiySafeCare, we appreciate all your efforts, time and continued provision of information to viewers. This is such an important move and patients must be educated to such, so that they can comment, as this rule will affect them -- either positively or negatively -- we don't know yet.
Again, thank you for all that you have done and are doing.
Roberta Mikles, RN
Advocates4QualitySafeCare
www.qualitysafepatientcare.com
Posted by: roberta mikles | October 15, 2009 at 09:01 AM