Supplier
NIH/NIDDK
Years Available
1988 to present
Periodicity
Annual
Mode of Collection
Abstraction of administrative/claims and other data: data for the USRDS database are compiled from existing data sources in CMS, CDC, and elsewhere.
Description
The United States Renal Data System (USRDS) is a national data system that collects, analyzes, and distributes information about end-stage renal disease (ESRD) in the United States. USRDS staff collaborate with staff from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), the United Network for Organ Sharing, and the ESRD networks, sharing data sets and actively working to improve the accuracy of ESRD patient information. USRDS has six goals: (1) to characterize the ESRD population; (2) to describe the prevalence and incidence of ESRD, along with trends in mortality and disease rates; (3) to investigate relationships among patient demographics, treatment modalities, and morbidity; (4) to identify new areas for special renal studies and support investigator-initiated research; (5) to provide data sets and samples of national data to support research studies by the Special Studies Center; and (6) to report the costs of ESRD treatments and total burden of ESRD program in the United States.
Selected Content
USRDS maintains a stand-alone database on the diagnoses and demographic characteristics of ESRD patients, along with biochemical data, dialysis claims, and information on treatment and payer histories, hospitalization events, deaths, physician and supplier services, and providers.
Population Covered
Medicare and non-Medicare ESRD patients, Medicare CKD patients.
Methodology
Data for the USRDS database are compiled from existing data sources including the CMS Renal Management Information System (REMIS), CMS claims data, facility survey data, CDC survey data (NHANES), Standard Information Management System (SIMS), Medicare Evidence form (CMS-2728), ESRD Death Notification form (CMS-2746), and United Network for Organ Sharing (UNOS) transplant and wait-list data. The CMS data files are supplemented by CMS with enrollment, payer history, and other administrative data, to provide utilization and demographic information on ESRD patients.
Response Rates and Sample Size
Response or coverage rates are 100% of people treated for ESRD since 1995. Ascertainment of incident cases may be incomplete because the data are for persons receiving ESRD treatment and do not include patients who die of ESRD before receiving treatment and those who are not reported to CMS.
Interpretation Issues
Analyses that rely on claims are limited to the ESRD population with Medicare fee for service insurance coverage.
References
United States Renal Data System. 2020 USRDS Annual Data Report: Epidemiology of kidney disease in the United States. National Institutes of Health, National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases, Bethesda, MD, 2020.
