HHS unveils plan to boost competition and innovation in US dialysis market
The Department of Health and Human Services introduced a national kidney-care plan aimed at easing entry for new dialysis providers and spurring innovation.
On Tuesday, the Department of Health and Human Services announced a comprehensive kidney-care initiative intended to lower obstacles for firms seeking to challenge the dominant dialysis providers. The plan attributes the lack of innovation to anti-competitive practices by DaVita and Fresenius Medical Care, which together control roughly 74% of the market, allowing them to set higher fees. It recommends revising the regulatory framework to promote competition, innovation, and patient-centered care while limiting government intervention to cases of clear market failure.
To improve early detection and treatment, the plan suggests the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Innovation develop new payment models. It also calls for tighter oversight and better incentives in the transplant system, building on a 2019 executive order with a National Transplant Expansion Strategy to simplify living donation and reduce waiting times for the nearly 90,000 patients awaiting kidneys. Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. presented the proposal in Fort Worth, Texas, framing it as part of a broader chronic-disease agenda.
Why it matters
The plan could reshape dialysis pricing and access, affecting millions of kidney patients and the broader healthcare market.
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