Nephrology News & Issues
Bundled payment system has hindered innovation in kidney care
October 14, 2024
In the movie Steel Magnolias, actor Julia Roberts plays Shelby, a young patient with diabetic kidney disease torn between her desire to be a mother and the reality of pregnancy pushing her into a life on dialysis.
Since the introduction of dialysis in the 1960s and the extension of universal disease-specific coverage of end-stage kidney disease under Medicare in 1972, most Americans know someone who has been on this life-saving treatment. Yet, many are not aware of the inequities that exist that preclude patients on dialysis from benefiting from innovations that would meaningfully prolong and improve their quality of life.