End-stage renal disease (ESRD) is a debilitating, costly, and increasingly common condition. Little is known about how different
financing approaches affect ESRD outcomes and delivery of care. This paper presents results from a comparative review of 12
countries with alternative models of incentives and benefits, collected under the International Study of Health Care Organization
and Financing, a substudy within the Dialysis Outcomes and Practice Patterns Study. Variation in spending per ESRD patient
is relatively small, but correlated with overall per capita health care spending. Remaining differences in costs and outcomes
do not seem strongly linked to differences in incentives.
Keywords End-stage renal disease - Dialysis - Health care financing - Incentives - Medical costs - Reimbursement - Transplantation
JEL Classifications I10 - I11 - I12 - I18