Kidney failure changes patients’ lives. I see patients battle kidney failure every day as a social worker at a dialysis clinic where they receive life-saving treatment. Unfortunately, physical hardships are only the beginning.
As a social worker, I help dialysis patients deal with insurance companies. It is a challenging task: dialysis is costly, and insurance companies do their best to avoid paying.
Nevertheless, private insurance gives patients the best opportunity to receive kidney transplants. Allowing kidney patients to keep their private insurance gives them the best shot. However, a recent Supreme Court decision allows private insurance companies to push patients onto Medicare before the traditional 30-month coverage window. This leaves patients without choice, without the best treatment options, and perhaps without a way to pay the remaining 20% Medicare does not cover.
That’s why Congressman Raul M. Grijalva (D-AZ) must support the Restore Protections for Dialysis Patients Act, which allows kidney patients to keep their private insurance for the first 30 months of dialysis treatment.
Carolyn McKeown, Ajo, Arizona
