Mayo Clinic Transplant Programs Certified for Medicare Coverage

Wednesday, June 03, 2009

SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. — All four solid organ transplant programs at Mayo Clinic have been reviewed and approved for Medicare coverage by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), a certification recognized as the highest quality indicator for a transplant program.

That means that Mayo's adult heart, kidney, liver and pancreas transplant programs are accessible to many more patients in need. Certification is granted only to transplant centers that demonstrate superior results in terms of clinical care, patient outcomes, demonstrated experience and expertise, adherence to safety and numbers of transplants completed.

Mayo Clinic met and exceeded its goals and is also recognized as one of 15 programs in the country for high transplant volumes and successful patient outcomes by the U.S. Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA). As a three-site organization, (Arizona, Minnesota and Florida) Mayo is the largest provider of solid organ transplantation in the U.S.

The rigorous, on-site re-review of Mayo's transplant programs by the Arizona Department of Public Health was completed on April 30, 2009, and included examination of not only Mayo's outcomes and clinical expertise, but processes related to donor selection, organ recovery, patient education and selection criteria.

Certification is significant for many patients, because approval by Medicare removes a potentially daunting financial barrier that can prevent patients from being able to be listed for a life-saving transplant. The sooner a patient can be listed for a heart, kidney, liver or pancreas transplant, the sooner he or she may qualify for transplantation.

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) is the federal agency responsible for administering Medicare, Medicaid and other health-related programs. Certain people under age 65 with disabilities — such as transplant candidates — are eligible to qualify for Medicare coverage at designated medical centers, such as Mayo Clinic.

"Our continued success is the result of our integrated team of specialists and our commitment to strong dedication to successful patient outcomes, families and caregivers, care for donors and patient follow-up," said David C. Mulligan, M.D., Director, Mayo Clinic Transplant Center. "We can credit the dedication of our entire team that puts patient needs above all else."

Adds Dr. Mulligan, "We are proud that our programs have earned CMS approval, given their stringent agency standards. This success comes at a time when a number of transplant programs nationwide are facing decertification and have been put on mandatory improvement plans because of questionable practices and inability to attract more patients."

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Mayo Clinic is the first and largest integrated, not-for-profit group practice in the world. As a leading academic medical center in the Southwest, Mayo Clinic focuses on providing specialty and surgical care in more than 65 disciplines at its outpatient facility in north Scottsdale and at Mayo Clinic Hospital. The 244-licensed bed hospital is located at 56th Street and Mayo Boulevard (north of Bell Road) in northeast Phoenix, and provides inpatient care to support the medical and surgical specialties of the clinic, which is located at 134th Street and Shea Boulevard in Scottsdale.

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About Mayo Clinic

Mayo Clinic is the first and largest integrated, not-for-profit group practice in the world. Doctors from every medical specialty work together to care for patients, joined by common systems and a philosophy of "the needs of the patient come first." More than 3,300 physicians, scientists and researchers and 46,000 allied health staff work at Mayo Clinic, which has sites in Rochester, Minn., Jacksonville, Fla., and Scottsdale/Phoenix, Ariz. Collectively, the three locations treat more than half a million people each year. To obtain the latest news releases from Mayo Clinic, go to www.mayoclinic.org/news. For information about research and education visit www.mayo.edu. MayoClinic.com is available as a resource for your health stories.