CMS announces new ACO model for dialysis patients

Medicare has launched a new accountable care organization (ACO) model centered on patients who receive dialysis for end-stage renal disease (ESRD), a condition that accounts for nearly 6 percent of all Medicare spending. Under the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services' Comprehensive ESRD Care (CEC) model, participating facilities will coordinate care for ESRD patients by forming ESRD Seamless Care Organizations, which will be financially accountable for Medicare spending and patient outcomes.The model is meant to encourage dialysis providers to innovate beyond their traditional roles in favor of a more patient-centered approach. The CEC model "promotes a patient-centered approach to their dialysis and non-dialysis care needs that will help accomplish our delivery system reform goals of better care, smarter spending, and healthier people," said Patrick Conway, M.D., CMS' acting deputy administrator and chief medical officer. Announcement