Medicare Program; CY 2027 Changes to the End-Stage Renal Disease (ESRD) Prospective Payment System, Acute Kidney Injury (AKI) Dialysis Payment, and ESRD Quality Incentive Program
Key claim: Medicare is updating 2027 payment rates for dialysis clinics treating kidney failure and acute kidney injury, and changing the quality scores that can raise or cut those clinics’ payments.
Abstract
(Rule · Health and Human Services Department, Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services) This final rule updates and revises the End-Stage Renal Disease (ESRD) Prospective Payment System for calendar year 2027. This rule also includes updates to the payment rate for renal dialysis services furnished by an ESRD facility to individuals with acute kidney injury. In addition, this rule updates the requirements for the ESRD Quality Incentive Program.
Why this matters
The ESRD Prospective Payment System sets what Medicare pays dialysis facilities for nearly all U.S. patients with kidney failure, and the attached Quality Incentive Program can cut a facility’s payment by up to 2% based on measured performance. Annual CY 2027 updates adjust the bundled per-treatment rate, the separate AKI dialysis rate, and the quality measures scored against clinics. Changes here flow through to clinic finances and, over time, to where and how dialysis is delivered.