Top 3 Kidney Care Trends to Watch in 2026: Insights from Interwell Health Partner Summit

The healthcare landscape in 2025 presented significant challenges: rising medical costs, increased utilization, and ongoing debate over healthcare funding created uncertainty among providers and payers. Yet kidney care continued to advance, with new clinical trials to evaluate emerging therapies,¹ the World Health Organization (WHO) kidney health resolution,² and AI models improving disease progression predictions.³

Despite these advances, the population of people at risk of developing kidney disease continues to grow and the costs of managing kidney disease are higher than ever. Chronic kidney disease (CKD) alone accounts for more than a quarter of Medicare spending, while commercial payers spend upward of $100,000 per person per year (PPPY) managing end-stage kidney disease (ESKD).⁴  The need for more sustainable models of care and stronger interdisciplinary partnerships has never been more urgent.

Against this backdrop, the Interwell Health 2025 Partner Summit brought together leading nephrology providers and practice administrators from across the country to explore the future of kidney care, including advances in care management, technology, and payment models. Three distinct themes emerged, signaling major shifts in how kidney disease will be managed in 2026 and beyond.

 

1. The decisive shift toward value-based kidney care

Value-based care has transitioned from concept to reality, delivering measurable improvements in patient outcomes while creating pathways to financial sustainability for nephrology practices.

The transition from fee-for-service to value-based care is no longer a future concept; it is a present-day reality delivering measurable results. Value-based models are proving their worth by improving patient outcomes and creating new financial opportunities for practices. While the 2024 Interwell Partner Summit signaled optimism for the future of value-based kidney care, the 2025 event confirmed its staying power.

Interwell CEO Tommy O’Connor opened the 2025 Partner Summit by highlighting the transformative potential of value-based care: “At its core, value-based care is incredible patient-centered, face-to-face care through physicians that's enriched by data that helps determine the next best action.” A long-time advocate for this approach, O’Connor recently left UnitedHealthcare to lead Interwell. “What made it attractive for me to join is the fact that we have the strongest network of providers in the country,” he said, reaffirming his commitment to investing in solutions that support providers on their value-based care journeys. 

 

Helen Giza, CEO of Interwell parent company Fresenius Medical Care, told the audience she expects Interwell to continue to strengthen its position in value-based kidney care as the nascent industry continues to mature and grow. Emphasizing that Interwell has the full support of Fresenius Medical Care and a leading market position, she said, “In an industry with a number of players, we shine through in everything we do.”

Speakers recognized throughout the event that the shift to value-based care is ongoing and has not been without challenges. During his keynote, Interwell Associate Chief Medical Officer Dr. Carney Taylor acknowledged the transition requires resilience, especially in the face of headwinds like post-COVID healthcare utilization increases and retrospective trend adjustments. "We're in the midst of a journey that's taking decades to unfold," he noted. "I'm here to tell you today that we are gaining ground, and the more ground we claim, the more we discover in terms of opportunities to get better."

While kidney care still operates on the "chassis of a fee-for-service system," Dr. Taylor shared his optimism for the future of value-based care. “I truly believe that for the majority of the patients we manage, if not all, we're going to be held accountable for their outcomes,” he said. Dr. Taylor reminded attendees, "Every one of you are in the room because you believe that through strategic realignment and payment reform you can improve the outcomes for your patients, the patients you serve, and you can save the healthcare system money. That's why we're here."

 

2. Deep integration of technology and AI in kidney care

Artificial intelligence and advanced analytics are moving from the periphery to the core of nephrology practice, empowering providers to deliver more predictive and personalized care.

Technology and AI are rapidly transforming how nephrologists identify and manage high-risk patients. These tools enable earlier interventions and more precise treatment decisions.

Providers largely access advanced analytics and AI-driven insights through the electronic health record (EHR), which serves as a lifeline in nephrology. “It is how you get through your day; it's how you manage your patients. We want that electronic health record to be helpful to you and draw your attention to the patients who need assistance right away,” said Dr. Taylor. He emphasized the importance of the EHR for managing patient populations and announced that Interwell is doubling down on its investment in Acumen, the Epic Connect EHR built for nephrology.

Dr. Terry Ketchersid, Interwell senior vice president, explained how Interwell continues to innovate and leverage Epic solutions to help practices increase efficiencies and improve patient care. For instance, Dr. Ketchersid described spending eight weeks mapping data points to the Epic Cosmos framework, the largest database of EHR patient information.⁵ Moving forward, Acumen users can gain access to Epic Cosmos tools such as Best Care Choices, which provides personalized recommendations based on data showing how similar patients responded to treatments.

Predictive modeling represents one of the most powerful applications for AI in kidney care. Interwell Chief Medical Officer Dr. George Hart highlighted how Interwell is using proprietary Imminent Hospitalization Prediction Models (IHPM) to identify at-risk patients and alert remote care managers to proactively intervene, helping to keep patients out of the hospital. Based on the success of the model, Interwell is expanding its use and piloting IHPM alerts with advanced practice providers (APPs).

 

3. A renewed focus on preventive care and patient engagement

Combining value-based care models, innovative treatments, and advanced analytics enables providers to deliver personalized, preemptive care that meaningfully slows CKD progression while empowering patients to actively manage their health.

Providers have always aimed to deliver proactive, patient-centered care. Today, new tools and models are transforming that aspiration into measurable improvements in outcomes. Earlier interventions, coupled with enhanced patient education, are reshaping kidney care.

As Jessica Demaline, Interwell senior vice president of healthcare operations, stated during a panel on patient engagement, “our goal is to ensure patients receive the right care, the interventions they need, at the right setting where they prefer that care, at the right time.” That philosophy, coupled with the right team and tools, is already delivering positive results. Demaline highlighted an analysis comparing patients engaged with Interwell’s virtual care model to those who are not. “We saw a 12 percent reduction in total cost of care and a 15 percent reduction in admission hospitalization rates,” she shared.

In addition to engagement, Interwell is focused on patient retention. “Fifty-seven percent of our patients are with an aligned provider. That is amazing because that's where our superpower is together,” said David Pollack, Interwell’s chief operating officer, during his keynote. “Let's make sure that people are seeing their nephrologists. Let's make sure that people are engaging with our care team and staying engaged. Those are the core metrics we're tracking every single day,” he added.

 

What's next for kidney care in 2026?

The 2026 kidney disease trends explored at Interwell Health's 2025 Partner Summit point to a collaborative future built on three pillars: value-based care models that align financial incentives with patient outcomes, AI-driven technology that enables predictive and personalized treatment, and preventive strategies that engage patients as active partners in their care.

O’Connor closed the summit with a confident vision for the kidney care community, emphasizing that tremendous progress will come from maintaining a singular focus on improving care and building a more sustainable healthcare system for patients. He left attendees with a parting message: “I've been incredibly impressed by how everyone has the same compass pointing to the same North Star, and that's the patient care that drives us every day.”

 

References

1.UC Davis Health: UC Davis Health launches new cell therapy trial for chronic kidney disease patients. https://health.ucdavis.edu/news/headlines/uc-davis-health-launches-new-cell-therapy-trial-for-chronic-kidney-disease-patients/2025/04

2. International Society of Nephrology: Historic win for kidney health as WHO adopts global resolution - International Society of Nephrology. https://www.theisn.org/blog/2025/05/23/historic-win-for-kidney-health-as-who-adopts-global-resolution/

3. Carnegie Mellon University: CMU Research Uses AI to Better Predict Kidney Failure. https://www.cmu.edu/news/stories/archives/2025/september/cmu-research-uses-ai-to-better-predict-kidney-failure

4. USRDS: Healthcare Expenditures for Persons with ESRD. https://usrds-adr.niddk.nih.gov/2024/end-stage-renal-disease/9-healthcare-expenditures-for-persons-with-esrd

5. Yale New Haven Health System: Yale New Haven Health System (YNHHS) Epic and Epic Cosmos – Resource Navigation Tool. https://ysph-dsde.github.io/resources-page/Pages/Datasets/More-Info-Pages/Restricted-Access/YNHHS-Epic-Cosmos.html