When your kidneys fail, dialysis is your hope for a better future. But affording dialysis can be a tricky ordeal because Medicare, which all dialysis patients are required to have as their primary provider after 30 months, only covers 80% of the treatment costs. For me, paying the other 20% was hard because, as someone under the age of 65, I had to pay high premiums for my supplemental plan. Unfortunately, paying for the coverage that saves patients' lives is about to become even more difficult. The Supreme Court decided that private insurance companies no longer have to provide full [...]

Kidney failure changed my life. I’ve learned a thing or two after spending 18 years on dialysis, receiving a kidney transplant, and spending years as an advocate for my fellow patients. In the initial 30 months of dialysis, dialysis patients have traditionally had the option to keep their private insurance in order to plan for their inevitable transition to Medicare. Planning proves especially important for patients who may no longer receive employer-provided insurance, since dialysis often prevents people from working. However, a recent Supreme Court decision may allow private insurers to diminish coverage for dialysis patients in that 30-month window, [...]

Since coming to Congress last year, Rep. Marie Gluesenkamp Perez has worked across party lines to help our community. I hope she’ll do so again by working to ensure that Washington’s kidney disease patients, of which I am one, can have access to proper insurance. After a Supreme Court ruling, private insurance companies may be able to weaken what they cover for dialysis patients. Previously, if someone had private insurance when they got diagnosed with kidney failure and started dialysis, they could keep their full coverage for up to 30 months before they, by law, must switch to Medicare. That [...]

Those with a sudden and serious illness that requires immediate medical attention are called “crash” patients. My husband Raymond was a crash patient when he was diagnosed with End Stage Renal Disease, or kidney failure. Luckily, Raymond had private insurance, so he didn’t have to worry much about the cost of his life-saving dialysis treatments when he started. Eventually, dialysis patients transition to Medicare as their primary coverage within 30 months after beginning treatment. Yet now, a Supreme Court ruling from last year leaves room for private insurers to weaken dialysis coverage in that initial 30-month period. This could push [...]

At the young age of 25 years old, I had to accept the fact that I would need dialysis treatment to survive. Like many Americans with kidney failure, I was too sick to continue working. I lost my employer-provided insurance soon after I stopped working. Since I did not immediately qualify for Medicaid, I was forced to pay the 20% of the bill that Medicare does not cover for 6 months. The costs were extensive, and I am still in the process of paying off that debt. It is imperative, therefore, that dialysis patients who have private insurance can keep [...]

My wife was diagnosed with kidney failure in January of 2022. I was her primary caregiver until she passed away in June of this year. Now, I dedicate my time advocating for Americans with kidney disease. A pressing problem facing kidney patients in America is the difficulty paying for dialysis, which keeps patients alive. It can cost hundreds of thousands of dollars without insurance. When my wife started dialysis, we had Medicare, but Medicare only covers 80%. We have a private insurance plan to supplement Medicare, which helped immensely. For patients with private insurance when beginning dialysis, keeping that insurance [...]

Ten years ago while working for an airline my life changed. I was diagnosed with kidney failure, and I learned I'd need dialysis to survive. Eight years of dialysis and a transplant later, I am writing now to advocate for kidney patients everywhere. For three years, I received dialysis in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. Despite initial difficulties, my dialysis care was relatively seamless. When I returned to the United States, Medicare required that I submit a plethora of paperwork. I had to pay out-of-pocket for more than 18 months while waiting for Medicare. Dialysis should not be more affordable in [...]

NEBRASKA -- Fifteen states do not require insurers to offer Medigap policies to people under 65 who are already enrolled through Medicare according to AARP. Medigap helps patients to afford deductibles and other out-of-pocket costs with policies such as Medicare Part B. However, Nebraska is one of those states that doesn't require it to be offered, to the shock of one North Platte resident named Jean Kay battling multiple sclerosis. "It was mind-boggling," said Kay. Jean Kay has been living with MS for over 20 years. Back in 2018, she was denied supplemental insurance due to her age of 61, [...]