We are in a critical moment for health care in Nebraska. According to the Nebraska Hospital Association, health care costs are on the rise and likely to stay high, in part due to inflation affecting hospital equipment, labor shortages and other factors. As these costs rise, hospitals are overflowing with patients despite falling numbers of COVID-19 cases. These pressures add up to create a concerning outlook for both health care providers and patients across Nebraska. This is especially true for those patients who were already struggling even before rising costs and limited space came to the forefront. Dialysis patients are at a distinct [...]

Finding out I needed to start dialysis two years ago was tough to accept. I’d always been an athlete, so I felt like this wasn’t something I’d have to face. But after low kidney counts for more than 5 years, I had to start treatments. Beyond difficult treatments, the financial burden they come with is enormous. I’m fortunate, however, to have a job at Life Alert Emergency Response that lets me tailor my schedule so I can stay employed and still receive health coverage. However, even between that plan and the secondary coverage I receive through Medicare, my monthly costs [...]

Editor: I have seen firsthand the hardships kidney patients face through both my daughter’s and father’s diagnoses. My daughter’s kidneys failed at age 23, and for over two decades, I was her caregiver while she was in and out of the hospitals and on dialysis. This wasn’t an easy task, but thankfully she received a kidney transplant almost two years ago. Kidney disease is not only hard on the body and makes it hard to live a normal life while tending to doctor’s appointments, dialysis treatments, and medical procedures that accompany the disease. On top of the health battles is [...]

When I started helping my dad after his kidney disease diagnosis, I thought it would be straightforward, taking him to the dialysis clinic and just generally caring for him. As I started learning more about the challenges kidney patients face, though, I remember looking around at all of the younger patients at his dialysis clinic and asking myself, “How on earth are they paying for this?” The answer for too many is that they can’t. In many states, Medicare only covers up to 80% of dialysis treatment, and Medigap plans to cover the remaining expense aren't accessible to patients under [...]

Kidney disease is a life-changing diagnosis for patients and their families. I experienced it first-hand as my husband went through dialysis and a kidney transplant, and I continue to see it every day working with kidney patients who are facing issues with treatments and cost. One of the most heartbreaking realities I see working with patients is that many are held back because they can’t get affordable coverage for the treatments they need to stay alive, since Medicare only covers part of the cost. That’s why we need Congress to pass the Jack Reynolds Memorial Medigap Expansion Act. The bill [...]

DEAR EDITOR: I recently participated in my second advocacy day meetings as part of Dialysis Patient Citizens, and am still overjoyed with the discussions I had with several of our distinguished members of Congress and their staff. I spoke briefly about how my own experience as a dialysis patient took away so much of my independence, and what so many patients have to deal with daily just to stay healthy, on top of appointments and unforeseen hospitalizations. These can seriously affect patients, especially when dealing with hospital bills that can turn into massive debts. For many dialysis patients, Medicare is [...]