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DPC’s 2020 Annual Membership Survey is Live!

2024-03-29T01:12:03+00:00August 6th, 2020|Categories: 5-Star Ratings, Access to Transplant, Article, Care Coordination, Charitable Premium Assistance, Dental Coverage, Dialysis Funding, Get Involved, Immunosuppressive Drug Coverage, Innovation, Medicaid, Medicare Advantage, Medigap Coverage, Quality Incentive Program, Take Action, Transplant Donor Protection, Transportation Services, Treatment Options|Tags: |

Elevate the Voice of Patients with Kidney Disease and Their Caregivers Our 2020 Annual Membership Survey is live, and it will remain open until Friday, August 21. We are counting on your participation, as patient 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 preferences. Your feedback is crucial. Therefore, we will [...]

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Action Alert – Help us Increase Patient Access to Immunosuppressive Medications

2024-03-29T01:12:03+00:00July 28th, 2020|Categories: Article, Immunosuppressive Drug Coverage, Medicare Advantage, News, Take Action|

The Comprehensive Immunosuppressive Drug Coverage for Kidney Transplant Patients Act (H.R. 5534, S. 3353) is gaining momentum in Congress, and we need your help continuing to get the word out. This bill was introduced by Representatives Ron Kind (D-WI) and Michael Burgess (R-TX), as well as Senator Bill Cassidy (R-LA). This legislation would extend Medicare coverage of immunosuppressive drugs beyond the current limit of 36 months for patients who are unable to obtain health insurance coverage elsewhere. Immunosuppressive medications play a critical role in preventing transplant recipients from rejecting a donor kidney. Right now, after dialysis patients receive a transplant, [...]

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Medicare Removes Important Protection for Dialysis Patients in Managed Care Plans

2024-03-29T01:12:04+00:00May 26th, 2020|Categories: Article, Medicare Advantage, Treatment Options|

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) last week issued a regulation for Medicare Advantage (MA) plans that eliminates time and distance limits from network adequacy requirements for dialysis facilities. Network adequacy requirements for health plans ensure that patients can have access to all necessary providers with reasonable promptness. Time and distance limits prescribe a maximum driving time or distance in miles that a consumer must travel to get to a doctor or facility. The limits are higher in rural areas. CMS replaced the time and distance limits with another standard, a network “consistent with the prevailing community pattern [...]

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Patient Advocates Raising Awareness Through Letters to the Editor

2024-03-29T01:12:05+00:00May 20th, 2020|Categories: Advance Patient Choice, Article, Care Coordination, Press|

Dialysis Patient Citizens takes great pride in the work that our patient ambassadors are doing each and every day in their communities and local dialysis facilities. Through providing additional education and access to resources for fellow dialysis patients, they help to make a difference in the lives of patients and encourage them to be their own advocates. One of the ways our ambassadors are making their voices heard are through letters to the editor, where they write and submit a letter to the editor to his/her local newspaper about a kidney disease issue and/or the importance of advocating for better [...]

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Another Dialysis Ballot Initiative Looming in California

2024-03-29T01:12:05+00:00April 28th, 2020|Categories: Article, News, Policy Issues, State Advocacy, Treatment Options|

Last week, the Service Employees International Union (SEIU) and United Health Workers West (UHW) submitted petition signatures for a potential ballot initiative in November. If the signatures are approved, California voters will vote on measure to dramatically increase the cost of dialysis care. The same group backed a similar measure (Proposition 8) two years ago, which voters widely rejected. DPC opposes the current ballot initiative because it adds burdensome requirements intended to drive up the cost of care for dialysis patients. One provision, in particular, would require a nephrologist to be present at all times at the dialysis facility whenever [...]

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Increasing State Policy Maker Outreach to Better Support our Members During COVID-19

2024-03-29T01:12:06+00:00April 21st, 2020|Categories: Advance Patient Choice, Article, Improve Access to Care, Increase Quality of Care, News, State Advocacy|Tags: |

DPC works tirelessly on behalf of its patient members to elevate their voice and concerns to elected officials about policy issues that impact ESRD patients. As you know, DPC has expanded its state advocacy efforts over the past year and added two staff members who focus on state issues and government relations. So, how does an organization continue this level of engagement during a pandemic when state legislatures are recessed, and social distancing doesn’t allow face-to-face interactions? Moreover, most state governments are focused solely on fighting COVID-19 and not passing bills or expanding regulation unrelated to COVID-19. The COVID-19 crisis [...]

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DPC Supports Increased Access and Quality of Care for Dialysis Patients Amid COVID-19

2024-03-29T01:12:06+00:00March 23rd, 2020|Categories: Care Coordination, Comment Letter, Increase Quality of Care, Medicare Advantage, Transportation Services, Treatment Options|Tags: |

DPC provided feedback to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) regarding the COVID-19-related issues that the kidney community is facing. DPC made recommendations to HHS in the following areas: Transportation COVID-19 Treatments and Vaccinations Home Dialysis People with End-Stage Renal Disease have a higher risk for developing a severe illness from COVID-19. As a result, it is crucial we do all that we can to help this vulnerable population in order to decrease the negative impact and spread of the virus. Read DPC's letter to HHS below for more details: Kumiko Lippold, PhD, MPH Department of Health [...]

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DPC Comments on CMS Proposed Rule Regarding Medicare Advantage

2024-03-29T01:12:07+00:00March 10th, 2020|Categories: Care Coordination, Comment Letter, Medicare Advantage, Treatment Options|

In 2021 End-Stage Renal Disease (ESRD) patients will be permitted to enroll in Medicare Advantage (MA) plans, potentially bringing major changes to ESRD care and how patients experience it. When open enrollment begins this fall, we want to make sure patients have access to the same robust benefits offered with MA plans right now. DPC reached out to the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) with recommendations on how to ensure ESRD patients maintain the access, choice and quality care they expect when these benefits are available to everyone. Currently, the only ESRD patients with MA plans are those [...]

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Action Alert – Secure Patient Access to Immunosuppressive Medications

2024-03-29T01:13:32+00:00January 12th, 2020|Categories: Access to Transplant, Article, Immunosuppressive Drug Coverage, Take Action|

The Comprehensive Immunosuppressive Drug Coverage for Kidney Transplant Patients Act of 2019 (H.R. 5534) was recently introduced by Representatives Ron Kind (D-WI) and Michael Burgess (R-TX). This legislation would extend Medicare coverage of immunosuppressant drugs beyond the current limit of 36 months for patients who are unable to obtain health insurance coverage elsewhere. Immunosuppressive medications play a critical role in preventing transplant recipients from rejecting a donor kidney. Right now, after dialysis patients receive a transplant, if they are under the age of 65, they are only eligible to remain on Medicare for an additional 36 months. After this three-year [...]

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Happy Holidays and DPC’s Top 10 Accomplishments of 2019

2024-03-29T01:13:32+00:00December 20th, 2019|Categories: 5-Star Ratings, About DPC, Access to Transplant, Article, Care Coordination, Charitable Premium Assistance, Dental Coverage, Dialysis Funding, Immunosuppressive Drug Coverage, Innovation, Medicaid, Medicare Advantage, Medigap Coverage, Quality Incentive Program, Transplant Donor Protection, Transportation Services, Treatment Options|

Dialysis Patient Citizens wants to wish you and your family a Happy Holiday, as well as a safe and healthy New Year. Our offices will be closed for the holidays starting December 23 through January 1. We also want to take this opportunity to share our list of Top 10 Accomplishments for 2019, which would not have been possible without your support. Thank you again for helping us elevate the dialysis patient voice with policy makers. We are extremely grateful for all of your advocacy efforts, and we look forward to our continued collaboration in 2020 as we work together to improve dialysis [...]

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