NEWS ARTICLES

The House Ways & Means Committee on Wednesday (July 13) passed two Medicare bills: one that lets kidney-failure patients enroll in Medicare Advantage, and another that again delays the so-called 25 percent rule for long-term care hospitals and that narrowly exempts four types of LTCHs from site-neutral pay measures. Kidney patient advocates praised the committee…

Patients suffering from end-stage renal disease would have the ability to enroll in Medicare Advantage plans under a bipartisan bill (H.R 5659) approved by a House panel July 13. Under current Medicare regulations, end-stage renal disease patients are prohibited from enrolling in Medicare Advantage. The House Ways and Means Committee also approved H.R. 5713, known…

Managing a serious personal health condition can feel like a full time job – one that is highly complex in nature, with no days off, and little room for error. For Americans with kidney failure – also known as End-Stage Renal Disease (ESRD) – managing health is, in fact, one of the most daunting challenges…

On July 8, Representatives Jason Smith, R-Missouri, John Lewis, D-Ga., Gus Bilirakis, R-Fla., and Kurt Schrader, D-Ore., introduced legislation that would give end-stage renal disease patients the choice to enroll in Medicare Advantage plans.  H.R. 5659, the “Expanding Seniors Receiving Dialysis’ Choice Act of 2016,” or ESRD Choice Act, would remove current government rules and…

Published by The Hill Congress Blog Written by Rep. Tom Marino April 8, 2016 All too often, national health crises present confounding dilemmas with no clear, obtainable solutions. When faced with terrible diseases that cannot be cured, frightening epidemics that reach our shores, or illnesses that defy previously successful treatments, healthcare providers and policymakers suffer…

Published by Nephrology News & Issues March 30, 2016 Insurance carriers in at least 34 states have begun to reject insurance premium payments from the American Kidney Fund (AKF) and many other health nonprofits on behalf of enrollees with chronic diseases, according to patient advocacy groups. AKF and others in the kidney community are asking…

Published by The Hill Congress Blog February 29, 2016 In just a few short decades, our ability to treat patients with once-terminal conditions has advanced dramatically. Thirty years in practice as a nephrologist have given me a front-row seat to remarkable changes and positive advances for individuals with multiple complex health conditions, including improved patient…

Published by Microcap Observer January 19, 2016 According to new research, dialysis and kidney transplant patients are surviving longer, however rates of end-stage kidney disease continue to rise. The annual data report from the United States Renal Data System (USRDS) reveals both positive and negative trends in kidney disease in the U.S. The report is…

Published by UPI January 18, 2016 Dialysis and kidney transplant patients are surviving longer, however rates of end-stage kidney disease continue to increase, according to new research. The United States Renal Data System and University of Michigan found in a new study that although treatment of kidney disease patients has improved in the last 20 years…

Published by the Clarion-Ledger January 4, 2016 Although kidney failure is a leading cause of death in the United States, many Americans know little about this disease. As a nation, there is much we can do to improve the quality of life for these patients by developing and utilizing new technologies, expanding patient choice and…