fbpx

Medicare Drug Plans Are Getting Better Next Year. Some Will Also Cost More.

2024-10-24T12:55:43+00:00October 21st, 2024|Categories: Article, Immunosuppressive Drug Coverage, Medicare Advantage, News, Promote Financial Security|

By Susan Jaffe October 21, 2024 When Pam McClure learned she’d save nearly $4,000 on her prescription drugs next year, she said, “it sounded too good to be true.” She and her husband are both retired and live on a “very strict” budget in central North Dakota. By the end of this year, she will have spent almost $6,000 for her medications, including a drug to control her diabetes. McClure, 70, is one of about 3.2 million people with Medicare prescription drug insurance whose out-of-pocket medication costs will be capped at $2,000 in 2025 because of the Biden administration’s 2022 Inflation Reduction Act, according [...]

DPC Comments to CMS Sound Alarm on Workforce Shortages

2024-08-22T14:11:27+00:00August 20th, 2024|Categories: Article, Comment Letter, Innovation, Medicare Advantage, Promote Financial Security, Protect Patient Care|

In our comments responding to Medicare’s annual ESRD Payment Rule, DPC took the government to task over payment updates that lag increases in labor costs and failure to effectively cover new drugs for dialysis patients. The proposed rule grants a net increase in the base rate of only 0.8% during a year in which wages, according to Bureau of Labor Statistics, rose 4.2%. The Medicare Payment Advisory Commission estimates a margin of zero for dialysis facilities in 2024, with many rural and low-volume facilities in the red. This occurs at a time in which a Supreme Court decision has emboldened [...]

Letter: Medicare, Medicaid not keeping up with inflation, hurting patient care

2024-06-06T16:32:28+00:00June 5th, 2024|Categories: Dialysis Funding, Medicare Advantage, Patient Stories in the News, Staffing Shortages|

Dear Editor, I was born with a rare genetic disorder that caused my kidneys and eyes to be underdeveloped. I have battled chronic kidney disease at all levels throughout my entire life. At age 25, I went into complete kidney failure (AKA End Stage Renal Disease) and began dialysis, which is a continuous and grueling treatment which does the work my kidneys can’t. The financial and emotional difficulties I’ve dealt with have been very challenging. Unfortunately, I must also worry about medical workforce shortages caused by a lack of federal funding. Over the past few years, the Centers for Medicare [...]

Letter: Medicare failed us

2024-05-10T15:08:12+00:00May 6th, 2024|Categories: Dialysis Funding, Medicare Advantage, Patient Stories in the News, Staffing Shortages|

As a program coordinator for the Kidney Foundation of Central Pennsylvania, I have made it my life’s mission to help kidney patients manage their condition. I see or hear stories of the inadequate standards of care currently practiced at clinics, hospitals and specialist practices in this country. Many patients I talk to are frustrated and feel like they have been forgotten. We must do better. The problem lies in the lack of health care workers. A severe lack of funding makes it more difficult to hire and keep doctors, nurses and technicians. Much of the problem is demographic. With fewer [...]

DPC Seeks Information on Patients’ Experience With Itching

2024-04-24T16:12:21+00:00April 24th, 2024|Categories: Advance Patient Choice, Article, Increase Quality of Care, Innovation, Medicare Advantage, Treatment Options|

A couple of years ago, a new drug was approved to treat ESRD-related pruritis. Medicare approved an additional payment for the drug Korsuva for a period of 2 years. But, because of the short expiration date, very few nephrologists prescribed the medication, so even fewer dialysis facilities dispensed the drug. As a result, Korsuva never took hold to become the standard of care for pruritis. We’d like to know (1) Have experienced pruritis? (2) If so, did your clinicians tell you about Korsuva? We would like to convey patients’ experiences as we ask for Medicare to revisit coverage: what it’s like [...]

Poor care? Blame Medicare payments

2024-04-16T15:09:10+00:00April 14th, 2024|Categories: Dialysis Funding, Medicare Advantage, Patient Stories in the News, Staffing Shortages|

My husband Raymond and I met on a blind date. Three months later, his kidney unexpectedly failed, and I have walked alongside him on his patient journey ever since. My husband’s life depends on dialysis, the treatment that does what his kidney can’t do. Unfortunately, we confronted problems with our dialysis center that reflect larger trends caused by insufficient reimbursements from the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS). Our nation is confronting a demographic crisis, with fewer working-aged people and more patients, which is why we are seeing worsening shortages of health care workers. CMS’ reimbursements have been far [...]

Reimbursement rates for health care professionals needs to be increased

2024-04-15T14:49:54+00:00April 7th, 2024|Categories: Dialysis Funding, Medicare Advantage, Patient Stories in the News, Staffing Shortages|

As a patient with End Stage Renal Disease (ESRD), or kidney failure, I know how health care workforce shortages can affect patients. I have been on dialysis for 7 years. At the clinic where I receive dialysis – the life-saving treatment which replaces my kidney function – any staff shortage can mean the difference between a smooth treatment and chaos. America is facing a historic health care workforce crisis. Staffing challenges and high demand have led to gaps in care like longer emergency room wait times. Unfortunately, Medicare is failing to address inadequate staffing and care. The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid [...]

Indiana Passes Affordable Access to Medigap for Under-age 65 Dialysis Patients

2024-03-29T01:09:11+00:00March 15th, 2024|Categories: Article, Medicare Advantage, Medigap Coverage, Promote Financial Security, Protect Patient Care, State Advocacy|

DPC is pleased to announce that the State of Indiana has passed into law SB 215, which provides three affordable Medicare supplemental plans (also known as Medigap) to Medicare enrollees under the age of 65 – including to patients with End Stage Renal Disease (ESRD). Senator Kyle Walker (R-IN-31) championed SB 215 in the Indiana Senate. Representative David Abbott (R-IN-18), a kidney transplant recipient himself, championed a companion bill in the Indiana House of Representatives. Governor Eric J. Holcomb (R-IN) signed SB 215 into state law on March 11, 2024. We want to recognize DPC Patient Ambassador Arthur Hill, whose compelling [...]

Dialysis Patient Citizens Applauds Passage of Legislation Securing Affordable Treatment for All Dialysis Patients in Indiana

2024-03-29T01:09:11+00:00March 14th, 2024|Categories: Medicare Advantage, Medigap Coverage, News, Press Release, Promote Financial Security, Protect Patient Care, State Advocacy|

WASHINGTON, D.C. (March 14, 2024) - Dialysis Patient Citizens (DPC), the leading advocacy organization for dialysis patients nationwide, today released the following statement applauding the passage and enactment of SB 215 in Indiana. The law offers three affordable Medicare supplemental plans (also known as Medigap) to Medicare enrollees under the age of 65 – including to patients with End Stage Renal Disease (ESRD). “We are grateful to see Indiana do right by dialysis patients and provide the patient choice and healthcare coverage that all Hossiers deserve,” said DPC Board President Andrew Conkling. “For decades, under-age 65 ESRD patients have paid [...]

Dialysis Patient Citizens Applauds New Legislation Restoring Protections for Dialysis Patients

2024-03-29T01:09:15+00:00December 20th, 2023|Categories: Dialysis Funding, Medicare Advantage, News, Press Release, Private Insurance Coverage, Promote Financial Security, Protect Patient Care|

WASHINGTON, D.C. (December 20, 2023) -- Dialysis Patient Citizens (DPC), the leading advocacy organization for dialysis patients nationwide, today released the following statement applauding the introduction of the Restore Protections for Dialysis Patients Act by Representatives Mike Kelly (R-PA), Yvette Clark (D-NY), Neal Dunn (R-FL), Danny Davis (D-IL), John Joyce (R-PA), and Raul Ruiz (D-CA) to restore access to critical health insurance coverage for patients who choose it. “We applaud Representatives Kelly, Clark, Dunn, Davis, Joyce, and Ruiz for standing with dialysis patients by introducing this critical legislation,” said DPC Board President Andrew Conkling. “For decades, many patients have relied [...]

Go to Top