Families have a lot in common, and something mine shares is kidney disease. Both my late mother and I who have suffered from this have had to receive life-saving dialysis treatments that allowed our bodies to continue to function.
At the beginning of my dialysis journey, I had insurance through my employer, which covered the costs of these pricey treatments.
However, they took up most of my time and energy, and I inevitably had to leave my job.
Being unable to work full-time is a persistent problem for patients on dialysis. Because of this, I now live on disability and adjust my lifestyle to a fixed income while getting coverage through Medicare.
However, even if Medicare covers a patient, they are still responsible for paying 20 percent of treatment costs. This was a substantial financial burden I faced until I was fortunate enough to find a program through my treatment center to help supplement those expenses.
However, a lot of dialysis patients aren’t as lucky. Dialysis patients across America struggle to pay for the treatment they need to survive.
We need Congress to step up and help. There is a bill called the Jack Reynolds Memorial Medigap Expansion Act that would extend access to Medigap coverage to all dialysis patients and ensure they can pay for these life-saving treatments.
Dialysis patients across America are struggling.
We desperately need members of Congress to recognize this burden and work to pass this bill.
Karen Garrett, Cincinnati, Ohio
