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2022’s State Advocacy Kick-Off

2024-03-29T01:10:09+00:00February 17th, 2022|Categories: Access to Transplant, Article, Medicare Advantage, Medigap Coverage, Promote Financial Security, State Advocacy, Transplant Donor Protection|

It’s been a busy start in 2022 for DPC’s state advocacy efforts. While many states are holding shorter legislative sessions due to the upcoming primary elections, bills impacting dialysis patients are being introduced and moving quickly through the legislative process. Legislation to expanded Medigap access has already been introduced in Arizona, Kentucky, Nebraska, Maryland, New Jersey, Rhode Island, and Vermont. Improving access to Medicare supplementary (Medigap) plans is a top policy priority for DPC, and we are pleased that multiple states are considering how they can help, particularly in states that have limited or no access to Medigap for the under [...]

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Medicare Kicks Off New Kidney Care Demonstration Project

2024-03-29T01:10:10+00:00February 1st, 2022|Categories: Access to Transplant, Article, Increase Quality of Care, Medicare Advantage, News, Promote Financial Security, Treatment Options|

The Center for Medicare and Medicaid Innovation has announced 85 sites for its Kidney Care Choices (KCC) Demonstration Project, which started January 1, 2022. The program, initially announced by President Donald Trump in July 2019, is intended to “help health care providers reduce the cost and improve the quality of care for patients with late-stage chronic kidney disease and ESRD… and to delay the need for dialysis and encourage kidney transplantation.” KCC consists of two separate programs. In Kidney Care First (KCF), participating nephrology practices receive payments on a per-patient basis for managing the care of patients with late-stage chronic kidney [...]

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DPC Responds to Medicare Officials’ Request for Information on Transplants and Home Modalities

2024-03-29T01:10:10+00:00January 31st, 2022|Categories: Access to Transplant, Advance Patient Choice, Article, Improve Access to Care, Medicare Advantage, Treatment Options|

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services are preparing new initiatives to promote transplant and home dialysis, and asked the public for recommendations. The request came as part of the President’s Executive Orders “to advance health equity and improve health outcomes for people in need of a life-saving transplant and dialysis,” according to Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra. DPC responded to several elements of the request. Equity in Organ Transplantation – DPC reiterated its position, shared by many experts, that Medicare should supplement payments on behalf of disadvantaged patients so providers can give them extra assistance in seeking transplants. [...]

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2021 Annual Survey Last Call!

2024-03-29T01:10:13+00:00August 26th, 2021|Categories: 5-Star Ratings, Access to Transplant, Article, Care Coordination, Charitable Premium Assistance, Dental Coverage, Dialysis Funding, Immunosuppressive Drug Coverage, Innovation, Medicaid, Medicare Advantage, Medigap Coverage, Patient's Voice, Protect Patient Care, Quality Incentive Program, Take Action, Transplant Donor Protection, Transportation Services, Treatment Options|Tags: |

24 hours remain to complete our survey. Make sure to complete your survey for a chance at one of 10 remaining $100 gift certificates. Our 2021 Annual Membership Survey is live, and it will remain open until Friday, August 27. Your feedback helps to shape our public policy agenda and patient education priorities for the next year. This year we ask that both patients and caregivers take our survey. Rest assured your responses will remain completely anonymous. We only share the overall survey results with state and federal level policy makers, so they will better understand your needs, experiences, and [...]

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It Works When We Work Together – 2021 State Legislature Recap

2024-03-29T01:10:14+00:00July 19th, 2021|Categories: Advance Patient Choice, Article, Medigap Coverage, State Advocacy, Transplant Donor Protection|

Nearly two years ago, DPC expanded its advocacy footprint to establish a state advocacy program to complement our ongoing federal efforts and in response to states increasing their role in health care policy and the delivery system which impacts dialysis patients’ access to quality care. While Congress continues its work through the remainder of 2021, a majority of state legislatures have already adjourned for this calendar year. Forty-six (46) state legislatures hold annual regular sessions and four states (MT, ND, NV and TX) hold biennial regular sessions, meeting every other year. Working with a number of our Patient Ambassadors throughout [...]

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Urge Congress to Support the Jack Reynolds Memorial Medigap Expansion Act!

2024-03-29T01:10:14+00:00July 6th, 2021|Categories: Advance Patient Choice, Article, Improve Access to Care, Medigap Coverage, Take Action|

Expanding Medigap coverage for End-Stage Renal Disease patients of all ages is a critical step to eliminating financial barriers to care, especially when it comes to transplantation. Congresswomen Cynthia Axne (D-IA-03) and Jaime Herrera Beutler (R-WA-03) recently introduced the Jack Reynolds Memorial Medigap Expansion Act (H.R. 1676) in honor of DPC founding Board member and our longest-serving president Jack Reynolds. This important bill would guarantee access to Medigap coverage for patients under 65 who suffer from End-Stage Renal Disease (ESRD). There are already 19 bi-partisan co-sponsors who are working to ensure ESRD patients can obtain insurance coverage to pay for the [...]

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Both Sides of the Aisle Agree – We Need to Help Kidney Patients

2024-06-07T15:24:50+00:00June 9th, 2021|Categories: Advance Patient Choice, Dialysis Funding, Improve Access to Care, Increase Quality of Care, Innovation, Medicare Advantage, Medigap Coverage, Protect Patient Care|

On June 8, 2021, Senators Benjamin Cardin (D-MA) and Roy Blunt (R-MO) re-introduced The Chronic Kidney Disease Improvement in Research and Treatment Act (S.1971), a bipartisan, bicameral bill designed to not only raise awareness of chronic kidney disease (CKD) and end-stage renal disease (ESRD), but also improve understanding and access to treatment for patients, which includes the Jack Reynolds Memorial Medigap Expansion Act. The latest statistics from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates that more that 1 in 7 US adults (about 37 million people) have CKD and that as many as 9 out of 10 of those adults [...]

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DPC Advocates Help Push State Legislation Forward

2024-03-29T01:10:16+00:00April 20th, 2021|Categories: Advance Patient Choice, Article, Medigap Coverage, State Advocacy, Transplant Donor Protection, Uncategorized|

State legislatures are in high gear during spring, and efforts by state legislators to support dialysis patients are in full swing this month. We’ve already had several legislative victories on living organ donor protection bills, while Medigap expansion legislation for the ESRD population has been introduced in multiple states. With support from multiple DPC Patient Ambassadors and Board Members sharing their personal stories on these two policy issues, DPC is making robust arguments for states to actively help improve the quality of life for End Stage Renal Disease (ESRD) patients. Kentucky, New Jersey, Maryland and Washington legislatures have already passed [...]

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April is Donate Life Month

2024-03-29T01:12:00+00:00April 1st, 2021|Categories: Access to Transplant, Article, Transplant Donor Protection|

Each April, National Donate Life Month encourages Americans to register as organ, eye, and tissue donors; to become educated about living donation (that includes living kidney donation!); and to honor those that have saved lives through the gift of donation. Over 100,000 children, men, and women are waiting for lifesaving organ transplants, with a new person added to the national transplant waiting list every 10 minutes. Here is some more information on the different types of transplant and what you can do to help. What are the different types of organ donation? Living donation – living donation is an opportunity [...]

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Bipartisan Living Donor Protection Act Introduced to Protect Organ Donors

2024-03-29T01:12:00+00:00March 18th, 2021|Categories: Advance Patient Choice, Article, Policy Issues, Transplant Donor Protection|

Congressman Jerrold Nadler (D-NY) and Congresswoman Jamie Herrera Beutler (R-WA), joined by Senator Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY) and Senator Tom Cotton (R-AR), introduced the Living Donor Protection Act to protect the rights of living organ donors. The Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) does not specify that living organ donors can take unpaid leave to recover from their donation and does not guarantee that donors will have a job waiting for them after surgery. Further, according to a 2007 study in the American Journal of Transplantation, as many as 11% of living organ donors experience difficulty securing or paying for insurance after [...]

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