I have struggled with kidney disease my entire life. I was diagnosed with End Stage Renal Disease when I was 7 years old, and I finally went on dialysis in 2010 at age 26 when my kidneys failed. While I was able to receive full coverage from private and public insurance providers due to the fact that I am legally blind, the sad reality is that many dialysis patients who aren’t disabled don’t have access to the full coverage they need for their treatments. For that reason, it’s important that Congress passes The Jack Reynolds Memorial Medigap Expansion Act. This [...]

Last year was tough for everyone as we navigated life during a pandemic and did what we could to stay home. Unfortunately, things got even tougher when I found out I had to start dialysis treatments again. While I was initially able to stop dialysis in 2010 thanks to a kidney transplant, complications meant that I had to start treatments again in 2020. The second time around, the entire process has been more difficult since I have more treatments each week than I did previously, and the cost of medications, treatments and more take their toll. Cost is a major [...]

For 10 years, I acted as my father’s in-home dialysis provider, and having the chance to be there for him was one of the most rewarding experiences of my life. While he passed away last year, I’ve been able to channel that energy into helping and educating other patients who are in the same position he was. Caring for my father, along with my experiences as a nurse and my recent schooling to become a health education specialist, opened my eyes to a lot of disparities affecting our health system that have serious ramifications for dialysis patients. So many patients [...]

When the COVID-19 pandemic first hit last year, it forced a lot of people out of work. That was especially the case for dialysis patients like me, as our kidney disease means we’re at a higher risk for getting seriously sick if we get COVID-19, and we’ve had to take extra steps to stay safe. While I’m looking forward to returning to work, doing so means I will lose some of the coverage I have that covers what Medicare doesn’t. Unless I can get that “Medigap” coverage, I and other dialysis patients in my situation will be stuck paying significant [...]