Fresenius Medical Care North America Partners with 1,000+ Nephrology Providers for New Kidney Care Payment Models

WALTHAM, Mass., Feb. 9, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Fresenius Medical Care North America (FMCNA), the nation's leading provider of kidney care products and services, announced today partnerships with more than 1,000 nephrology providers as part of the new Kidney Care Choices (KCC) models first announced by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) in 2019, and formally beginning in 2022. The majority of the physicians are members of InterWell Health, the largest network of nephrologists in the country. These partnerships comprise 20 of the 55 approved Kidney Contracting Entities (KCEs) recently announced by CMS.

"We appreciate the more than one thousand nephrology providers who have chosen to partner with us in this important government value based program to improve care for people living with late-stage kidney disease and kidney failure," said David Pollack, President of FMCNA's Integrated Care Group. "We are committed to delivering better outcomes while reducing total costs to our healthcare system. Our innovative solutions have shown we can truly make a difference as we work to intervene earlier to treat kidney disease under new value based models of care."

Since 2005, FMCNA has successfully executed numerous value based care programs with the government and private payors. Over just the past seven years, the company has supported 500,000 value based care program participants and managed risk for more than $20 billion in medical expenses. In recent years, these services and support have expanded to meet the unique needs of patients with CKD and ESRD.

Within the Comprehensive Kidney Care Contracting options of the KCC, FMCNA will help manage care for more than 50,000 individuals by providing specialized education and support services to slow the progression of kidney disease, increase preemptive transplants, and increase the prevalence of a planned start to life-sustaining treatment.

"We are excited to bring our many years of experience and learnings from previous government initiatives to this new program," said Dr. Terry Ketchersid, Chief Medical Officer of FMCNA's Integrated Care Group and co-Chief Medical Officer of InterWell Health. "Under the direction of the nephrologist, care coordinators will ensure the patient's plan of care is carried out, providing access to social workers and renal dietitians well before dialysis is needed. Too often patients with kidney disease crash into the hospital with critical health issues and require an urgent start to dialysis, so this program helps incentivize earlier interventions to create a better plan for treatment and management of this disease." 

As part of its value based care programs, FMCNA leverages data to power proprietary predictive models that aim to slow kidney disease progression and reduce hospital admissions. More than 50 percent of private payor program participants over the last 5 years have selected home dialysis or kidney transplant when transitioning from CKD to kidney failure. Additionally, planned starts to dialysis under these value based care programs are two times the national average.

The patients managed under these new government models will benefit from FMCNA's KidneyCare:365 Care Choice Program designed for this government initiative. The program supports people living with late-stage CKD through personalized education, hands-on support, and expanded care coordination activities to help better manage their often complex and chronic conditions including diabetes, hypertension, and behavioral health. In addition to earlier intervention and prevention, the program provides extensive education about kidney disease and related comorbidities, the importance of seeing a nephrologist, eating well and healthy living with support from dietitians and social workers, and treatment options for kidney failure including transplant and home dialysis.

For more information about how FMCNA manages kidney disease through its value based care programs, please visit https://fmcna.com/patient-care/value-based-care/fresenius-health-partners/.

Disclaimer:
The statements contained in this press release are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views or policies of CMS. The authors assume responsibility for the accuracy and completeness of the information contained in this document.

About Fresenius Medical Care North America 
Fresenius Medical Care North America (FMCNA) is the premier healthcare company focused on providing the highest quality care to people with renal and other chronic conditions. Through its industry-leading network of dialysis facilities and outpatient cardiac and vascular labs, Fresenius Medical Care North America provides coordinated healthcare services at pivotal care points for hundreds of thousands of chronically ill customers throughout the continent. As the world's largest fully integrated renal company, it offers specialty pharmacy and laboratory services, and manufactures and distributes the most comprehensive line of dialysis equipment, disposable products, and renal pharmaceuticals. For more information, visit the FMCNA website at https://fmcna.com/.

Media Contacts:
Fresenius Medical Care North America
Brad Puffer
Corporate Communications
[email protected]
(781) 699-3331

SOURCE Fresenius Medical Care Holdings, Inc.