Joelle Nelson received her doctorate of pharmacy degree from Midwestern University College of Pharmacy Glendale in Arizona. She completed her pharmacy residency at University Health in San Antonio, TX and went on to establish transplant pharmacy services at University of Florida Health in Gainesville, FL. She returned back to University Health in 2018 to add to the growing transplant pharmacy group. She predominantly practices in adult abdominal solid organs and has a passion for public policy and research. Last year, she published one book chapter and five peer reviewed manuscripts. She most recently was recognized as a fellow by the American Society of Transplantation for her exceptional commitment to the field of transplantation and larger community. Currently, she is working as the lead author on national consensus recommendations for maintenance immunosuppression in all solid organs to further advocate for off-label, off-compendia medication use in less-represented organ groups.
Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) is in the process of issuing a final rule on extending immunosuppressive coverage from three-year post-transplant to lifelong for eligible kidney transplant recipients, also known as Medicare Part B-ID. Eligibility for Medicare Part B-ID will begin January 1, 2023. This presentation will review what is currently known about Medicare Part B-ID based of the proposed rule, as well as highlight what requires further clarification.