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Happy Holidays and DPC’s Top 10 Accomplishments of 2018

2024-03-29T01:13:36+00:00December 19th, 2018|Categories: Advance Patient Choice, Article, Care Coordination, Charitable Premium Assistance, Dialysis Funding, Get Involved, Medicare Advantage, Medigap Coverage, Take Action, Transplant Donor Protection|Tags: |

Dialysis Patient Citizens wants to wish you and your family a Happy Holiday, as well as a safe and healthy New Year. We also want to take this opportunity to share with you our Top 10 list of accomplishments for 2018, which would not have been possible without your support. Thank you for helping us elevate the dialysis patient voice with policy makers. We are extremely grateful for all of your efforts, and we look forward to our continued collaboration in 2019 as we work together to improve dialysis patient quality of life.

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The Lame Duck Congress

2024-03-29T01:13:36+00:00December 5th, 2018|Categories: Article, Care Coordination|

The 115th Congress has three remaining weeks to conduct business before the new Congress is sworn in on January 3, 2019. With so many outgoing Members and with Democrats taking over control of the House, some speculated Congress would get a lot accomplished during this lame duck session. That, however, does not appear to be the case. Last week, following the passing of President George H.W. Bush, Congress quietly passed a spending bill, which will keep the government running through December 21, 2018. In order to avert a government shutdown, they will need to pass another spending measure before then—right now the biggest contingency [...]

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Medicare Threat to Vascular Access Centers Delayed

2024-03-29T01:13:37+00:00November 6th, 2018|Categories: Article, Dialysis Funding, Improve Access to Care|

Last month we reported that the Centers for Medicaid Services (CMS) was proposing to cut reimbursement for vascular access centers effective January 2019. We’re pleased to report now that CMS is delaying any cuts as it studies the matter further. In recent years, CMS has pushed for “site-neutral payments,” meaning that Medicare pays the same for procedures regardless of whether they are performed in a doctor’s office or a more costly hospital setting. Specifically, this means paying at the lowest rate. In the case of vascular surgery for dialysis access, CMS proposed to pay the “office-based” rate, which would not suffice to keep [...]

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Proposition 8 Podcast and 48 Hours Left to Vote

2024-03-29T01:13:37+00:00November 4th, 2018|Categories: Improve Access to Care, Take Action|Tags: |

Podcast About Proposition 8 Dialysis Patient Citizens recently spoke at length about the disastrous consequences if proposition 8 were to be passed. Listen to the podcast. The Dangers of Proposition 8 Proposition 8 is a dangerous ballot initiative in California, and if passed, can have devastating consequences for dialysis patients’ access to care. Specifically, many dialysis facilities will face potential closure leaving patients to: Scramble to find new dialysis facilities for their treatment and Potentially travel much farther to receive their life-saving care Dialysis patient access to care is at stake! Please help the 84,000+ dialysis patients in California by voting [...]

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Advocacy for More Care Coordination

2024-03-29T01:13:37+00:00October 24th, 2018|Categories: Care Coordination, Quality Incentive Program|

DPC continues its advocacy in support of the Dialysis PATIENTS Demonstration Act (H.R. 4143/S. 2065), recently reaching out to members of both the House of Representatives and Senate. In our letters to Congress, we highlighted a number of important healthcare improvements for dialysis patients that are tied to the PATIENTS Act, including better care coordination, additional patient support and improved quality standards among clinics. DPC is joined by a number of organizations that agree on the potential benefits to patients in The Dialysis PATIENTS Act and have pledged their support. Click here to read DPC’s letter to the House of Representatives. [...]

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California Residents: October 22 Voter Registration Deadline Approaching

2024-03-29T01:13:37+00:00October 19th, 2018|Categories: Article, Dialysis Funding, Improve Access to Care, State Advocacy|

The deadline to register to vote in California is Monday, October 22. This is an especially important year to get your voice heard as the outcome of the election can impact the over 84,0001 individuals in California with kidney failure. Proposition 8 is a dangerous ballot initiative in California, and if passed, can have devastating consequences for dialysis patients’ access to care. Specifically, many dialysis facilities will face potential closure leaving patients to: Scramble to find new dialysis facilities for their treatment and Potentially travel much farther to receive their life-saving care Dialysis patient access to care is at stake! Help the 84,000+ dialysis [...]

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DPC Increases Advocacy Efforts to Help Block Proposition 8

2024-03-29T01:13:37+00:00October 10th, 2018|Categories: Article, Dialysis Funding, Improve Access to Care, State Advocacy, Take Action|

Proposition 8 is a dangerous ballot initiative that California residents will be asked to vote on this November. If proposition 8 is passed, this can have devastating consequences for dialysis patients’ access to care. Specifically, many dialysis facilities will face potential closure leaving patients to: Scramble to find new dialysis facilities for their treatment and Potentially travel much farther to receive their life-saving care Even if you are not a resident of California, your influence can help dialysis patients. Please help us spread the word about the dangers of this initiative by urging your family and friends that live in California [...]

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California Governor Vetoes Bill After Dialysis Patients Raise Concerns

2024-03-29T01:13:37+00:00October 1st, 2018|Categories: Article, Improve Access to Care, State Advocacy|

Thanks to the help of many dialysis patients and advocates, California Governor Jerry Brown vetoed Senate Bill 1156. Senate Bill 1156 is one of the many policy issues impacting dialysis patients that DPC worked on this year. In 2018 alone, DPC and its advocates sent over 55,000 emails to lawmakers expressing concerns about the bill. In addition, with the help of local patients, DPC met with over 40 lawmakers in California to speak about the negative impact this bill would have on individuals receiving dialysis treatment. DPC expresses its sincerest gratitude to the thousands of patients and advocates that worked [...]

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DPC Comments on Threat to Vascular Access Centers

2024-03-29T01:13:38+00:00September 19th, 2018|Categories: Article, Comment Letter, Dialysis Funding, Improve Access to Care|

The Centers for Medicaid Services (CMS) is proposing to cut reimbursement for vascular access centers. This could negatively impact dialysis patents’ access to care, which is why we have weighed in on this important issue. Dialysis Access and Fistulas People with kidney failure need to have a dialysis access placed in order to receive live-saving dialysis treatments. Vascular surgeons create and maintain arteriovenous fistulas, which is a type of dialysis access. Fistulas are important for individuals on dialysis as they are considered a best practice in kidney care, improve patient outcomes and reduce the risk of infection. Read DPC’s comment letter [...]

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DPC Supports Improved Access to Private Insurance for Patients

2024-03-29T01:13:38+00:00August 22nd, 2018|Categories: Access to Transplant, Article, Comment Letter, Dental Coverage, Private Insurance Coverage|Tags: |

Currently, dialysis patients are restricted to 30 months on private insurance coverage before having to go into Medicare. The House of Representatives recently proposed extending this length of time by three months, which is estimated to save Medicare $344 million. Access to private insurance is critical for dialysis patients, and we are very appreciative of the House’s efforts to improve that access. Read our letter below in support of this proposal: Dear Leader McConnell, Minority Leader Schumer, Chairman Hatch, and Ranking Member Wyden: As America’s largest patient-led kidney disease organization representing over 30,000 dialysis patients and family members, Dialysis Patient [...]

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