Cost of haemodialysis portable machines

If at all possible please keep us updated on the Allient. I am really interested in the machine because of short and long treatment availability. I know our center is interested too. We have quite a few nocturnal patients all wanting a machine with less maintenance and not requiring an additional RO is a big plus for us.

In the United States under Method II of payment, it sounds as though the durable machine co. bills Medicare for the machine and supplies. If this is the case, I can’t see what difference it would make to a center the cost of the machine. Anyone have an answer or am I interpreting Method II wrong.

Under Method II, like you said, the DME bills Medicare for the machine and supplies. DMEs make good money on CCPD, but they make the same for CAPD and HHD so I don’t know what companies are willing to be Method II supply companies. Under Method II the clinic is only responsible for providing support services. However, this means that the staff need to know how to train and operate the machine that you’d be using and some clinics like to only have to worry about one machine. If a clinic can make money under Method I with a different machine, they might not want patients under Method II. However, a clinic doesn’t have to have all its patient under one Method or the other. In theory, patients are supposed to have the right to choose Method I or Method II.

It’s reportedly possible for patients to buy a dialysis machine and get reimbursed by Medicare for it. I don’t know how much any of the machines cost or whether the company would sell it to you. Medicare reimburses on a monthly basis so if the machine was no longer needed, you’d need to continue to pay for it and try to sell it to someone to recoup as much of your costs as you can. You always face the risk that technology is changing and you could be left with a machine that is the hottest thing today but is surpassed by something even better tomorrow.

Does anyone recall the plan George Harper dreamed up to cut out the middle man (he wanted to travel in his motor home doing home hemo and his unit was trying to axe him)? He succeeded in becoming his own Medicare provider.

I don’t recall…

Do you have an full article about him?

The article I have read was on
http://www.globaldialysis.com/georgeharper.asp

George Harper became a Method II provider. I don’t remember if he rented or bought his machine, but he had to do his own Medicare billing and wait for Medicare payment which I believe is faster now than when he did it. I’m pretty sure he still had to have a dialysis clinic for support services and a nephrologist to prescribe his dialysis, medications, and supplies.

Wow, finally got a chance to read his story…thanks for the link Beachy!..

My goodness, I can’t believe how a patient can go through all that stress and deal with dialysis… :shock:

I can also see the machine he used is a COBE!! Same kind I used back then…

Also, I must agree with Beth…you can’t do it all alone for long…but I guess as long as you can do it for the time beeing its all worth it.

I wonder whether he still is alive today…

George is very much alive. He helped found the Georgia Association of Kidney Patients http://www.gakp.com/index.html and is their immediate past president.

I hold a patent to the smallest home dialysis machine out there that also recirculates and purifies its own water. This also has an online EKG and more. I should have the prototype finished by February of next year.

I’m sure we’ll all look forward to seeing it once it’s done.

[QUOTE=Anonymous;4847]In South Africa, the situation is that a patient has to be assessed as to whether he/she is a candidate for a transplant. If they are not a candidate for a kidney transplant the general hospitals give you 2 weeks notice that they will no longer continue with dialysis. This means that you have to find your own funding or seek financial assistance from your own medical aid, and full costs are not covered.
From one response it seems that purchasing a machine may not be a good idea. Does anyone know if NxStage one is available in South Africa for rent, and who the suppliers are?
Heather[/QUOTE]

The NX machine is not yet available for the south African market but will be soon. All enquiries to my office here in Dubai 00971504623385. Brian

[QUOTE=Anonymous;4823]Can anyone tell me what the purchase price is of a good haemodialysis portable machine. I have read about the Allient and the NxStage one.
Is the Aksys PHD PORTABLE available yet to purchase. What are the cost of the consumables relative to the different machines. Does anyone know if the consumables are readily available in South Africa.
Heather[/QUOTE]

I would like to know the cost of portable hemodialysis machine, which can use at home.

In the US, people do not buy their own HD machines (unless they are wealthy and want a spare). The dialysis clinic buys–or usually leases–the machine and provides it to the patient. This means that we don’t know how much the machines cost. If you are in another country, this may be different.

I did not know that those who are wealthy can purchase a spare machine- thought everyone had to go through a clinic. Really?

You still have to go through a clinic and a nephrologist, but, yes, we’re aware of folks who have bought machines, hired nurses at home (on their own dime), etc.

In the U.S. anyone who has Medicare, Medicaid, or insurance should not have to purchase a machine – even a spare – because the dialysis clinic is responsible for assuring that a home patient’s machine gets the proper preventive maintenance and is operational. If there is a problem with the machine that would cause the patient to miss a treatment, the dialysis clinic should make arrangements for the patient to get dialysis in-center – either at the clinic where the patient was trained or at another clinic closer to the patient’s home. If the patient has been doing longer or more frequent treatment at home and he/she must do standard in-center dialysis 3-4 hours 3x/week until his/her machine can be repaired or replaced, the patient immediately should ask for the dietitian to explain any changes in diet and fluid limits. Too much fluid and/or potassium can be risky to health or even deadly.

So far as costs of machines, I believe the manufacturers should be able to tell you the manufacturer’s suggested list price. I suspect dialysis providers who have contracts to rent or purchase machines do not pay this amount.

[QUOTE=Anonymous;4823]Can anyone tell me what the purchase price is of a good haemodialysis portable machine. I have read about the Allient and the NxStage one.
Is the Aksys PHD PORTABLE available yet to purchase. What are the cost of the consumables relative to the different machines. Does anyone know if the consumables are readily available in South Africa.
Heather[/QUOTE]

want to know cost for home hemodiaysis.

In the U.S. Medicare pays the same amount per treatment for home hemodialysis as for in-center HD treatments for the same patient at the same facility. There are facility-level and patient-level adjustments to Medicare payment so there could be a slightly different payment amount for two different patients at the same clinic or for the same patient if he/she is treated at different clinics. Medicare routinely pays for 3 hemodialysis treatments a week, but may pay for more with medical justification for additional treatments. The average payment in 2012 for dialysis and certain other services that are included in that payment will be about $234/treatment. Medicare’s payment is less than what dialysis clinics charge.

We do not have information on what individual dialysis clinics charge for home hemodialysis. That would be a question to ask the clinic’s billing personnel.

we still want to know the cost of haemodialysis portable machine,want to know the address and phone number of a seller