Association of Chronic Condition Special Needs Plan With Hospitalization and Mortality Among Patients With End-Stage Kidney Disease

IMPORTANCE: While several studies have demonstrated the benefit of enrollment in chronic condition special needs plans (C-SNPs) for other chronic diseases (eg, diabetes), there is no evaluation of the association of C-SNPs with outcomes among patients with end-stage kidney disease (ESKD). OBJECTIVE: To examine whether and to what degree C-SNP enrollment was associated with improved clinical outcomes and quality of life in patients with ESKD. DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS: This multicenter cohort study included 2718 patients who were newly enrolled in an ESKD C-SNP between January 1, 2013, and September 30, 2017, and receiving dialysis from DaVita Kidney Care. Patients were followed up until death, loss to follow-up, or end of study (ie, December 31, 2018). Enrollees in C-SNP were matched via multiple clinical and demographic characteristics with 2 different control populations, as follows: (1) those in the same facilities (n = 2545) or (2) those in similar counties (n = 1986). Patients enrolled in CareMore C-SNPs (n = 206) were excluded from the study. Data analysis was conducted June to December 2019. EXPOSURES: Standard ESKD care with dialysis plus access to an integrated care team who worked with the patient and the dialysis team, comprehensive health assessments done by the integrated care team, and access to select benefits (such as vision and dental care) as a C-SNP enrollee. MAIN OUTCOMES AND MEASURES: Hospitalizations, mortality, laboratory values indicative of metabolic control, and Kidney Disease Quality of Life 36-item (KDQOL-36) survey scores. RESULTS: The 2545 C-SNP enrollees in the facility-matched analysis had a mean (SD) age of 57.2 (12.9) years, and included 968 (38.0%) women, 1328 (52.2%) Hispanic individuals, and 553 (21.7%) African American individuals. The 1986 C-SNP enrollees in the county-matched analysis had a mean (SD) age of 57.8 (12.2) years, with 705 (35.5%) women, 1085 (54.6%) Hispanic individuals, and 472 (23.8%) African American individuals. Compared with patients not enrolled in C-SNP, enrollees had lower hospitalization rates, with incidence rate ratios of 0.90 (95% CI, 0.84-0.97; P = .006) in the facility-matched analysis and 0.76 (95% CI, 0.70-0.83; P < .001) in the county-matched analysis. Compared with patients not enrolled in C-SNP, enrollees had decreased mortality risk in the same facilities (hazard ratio, 0.77; 95% CI, 0.68-0.88; P < .001) and in the same counties (hazard ratio, 0.77; 95% CI, 0.66-0.88; P < .001). No significant differences were observed between C-SNP enrollees and matched patients in metabolic laboratory values or KDQOL-36 survey scores. CONCLUSIONS AND RELEVANCE: This cohort study found a positive association of C-SNP enrollment with lower rates of hospitalization and mortality. The findings suggest that the additional services and benefits C-SNPs provide may improve outcomes compared with standard of care for patients with ESKD.