Political Quotes

“Mr. President, I have long worked for the continued viability of rural low-volume hospitals so that Medicare beneficiaries living in rural areas in Iowa and elsewhere in the country will continue to have needed access to care. Today, I want to discuss another concern, one regarding low-volume dialysis clinics in rural areas and the kidney dialysis patients they serve. Congress enacted a new end-stage renal dialysis, ESRD, bundled payment system in the Medicare Improvements for Patients and Providers Act of 2008 that takes effect next year. I support the establishment of a fully bundled payment system for renal dialysis services. It is intended to improve payments for ESRD services and to ensure access to critical renal dialysis services, including those in rural areas. It will also improve the quality of care for dialysis patients by requiring ESRD providers to meet certain standards through a new quality incentive program that is established for ESRD providers. It establishes a permanent annual update for ESRD providers. It also provides for payment adjustments in certain circumstances, such as payments for low-volume facilities and for dialysis facilities and providers in rural areas that need additional resources. Last fall, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, CMS, issued a proposed rule to implement the new ESRD bundled payment system. That rule will be finalized later this year.…”