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Baxter and Fresenius Medical benefited the most
by Nho, Byung Chul Jul 07, 2023 05:43am
As the Ministry of Health and Welfare's pilot project for home management of peritoneal dialysis patients began in earnest, the sales of Baxter and Fresenius Medical, which supply related products, are also expected to grow exponentially. As of 2022, total domestic hemodialysis patient medical expenses amounted to 2,634 billion won, of which peritoneal dialysis accounted for 4-5%. According to the hemodialysis adequacy evaluation data in 2018, the number of hemodialysis patients in that year was 90,901, and it is showing an increasing trend of 10,000 each year, which is difficult to find worldwide. The annual cost of hemodialysis per patient who visits the hospital's artificial kidney room for treatment is about 30 million won, and peritoneal dialysis, which can be treated at home, is observed to be 20-30% cheaper. Therefore, the health authorities plan to reduce the proportion of hemodialysis, which costs astronomical costs, and induce peritoneal dialysis to induce financial soundness, considering the health insurance financial deficit and reduction in reserves. According to what is known, health authorities are planning various policies/systems to raise the rate of peritoneal dialysis from less than 5% to a maximum of 10-20% through this pilot project. The health insurance benefit subsidy for cassettes, hemo-vacs, and catheter tip occluders, which are consumables required when using an automatic peritoneal dialysis machine, is 14.2 million won per day. Previously, the subsidy (5,640 won per day) was not enough to purchase only a cassette, but the burden of patients was reduced by expanding the benefits for Hemo-vac. Automated peritoneal dialysis is when a patient connects an automatic peritoneal dialysis machine, dialysis solution, and body catheter before going to bed, and dialysis is automatically performed while sleeping. For this reason, while there are few restrictions on work, school life, and social activities, there is a risk of accidents such as secondary infection as the patient handles all processes directly. This is a part that can be sufficiently prevented with proper education. Hemodialysis requires direct visits to the artificial kidney room three times a week for dialysis for 3 to 4 hours a day, and emergency response can be swift. Still, it has the disadvantage of being restricted in daily life. The pilot project for home management of peritoneal dialysis patients was adopted by order of the Ministry of Health and Welfare in December 2019, and the second pilot project (May 2022-2025) is currently underway. The purpose of the project is to continuously manage at-home patients and provide feedback to reduce unnecessary medical expenses due to hospitalization and worsening of diseases and to improve the quality of life of patients. The target is a chronic kidney disease stage 5 patient who needs renal replacement therapy and has agreed to participate in the pilot project for home management of peritoneal dialysis patients.