[Congressional Record Volume 158, Number 36 (Tuesday, March 6, 2012)]
[Senate]
[Page S1425]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

      By Mr. CONRAD:
  S. 2163. A bill to amend title XVIII of the Social Security Act to 
improve Medicare benefits for individuals with kidney disease, and for 
other purposes; to the Committee on Finance.
  Mr. CONRAD. Mr. President, I am introducing the Kidney Disease 
Equitable Access, Prevention, and Research Act. This legislation 
recognizes the importance of patient choice, access to care, and 
educational efforts to assist the more than 400,000 Americans with 
kidney failure to manage their disease and understand the treatment 
options.
  First, the legislation seeks to maintain patient choice to retain 
their private insurance options, even after they qualify for Medicare 
by virtue of their disease state. Under current law, an individual 
diagnosed with kidney failure, or End Stage Renal Disease, ESRD, has 
the choice to maintain his/her current group health plan or transition 
immediately to Medicare. The legislation introduced today would direct 
the Secretary to clarify that this long-standing requirement also 
applies to group health plans established through Health Benefit 
Exchanges, as well as more traditional plans.
  Second, the legislation seeks to improve access to preventive and 
educational services by expanding access to coverage for kidney disease 
education services.
  Finally, the legislation seeks to address barriers to receiving this 
life-sustaining treatment, including transportation issues and factors 
that lead to disparities among minority populations. It also calls on 
the Secretary to report on gaps in quality and care management metrics 
to support ongoing efforts to continue quality improvement in the 
Medicare ESRD program.
  I call on my colleagues to reaffirm the Congressional commitment to 
Americans with ESRD by ensuring equitable access to care for 
individuals with kidney disease, supporting research to improve access 
to high quality kidney care, and improving access to preventive care 
for individuals with ESRD. The Kidney Disease Equitable Access, 
Prevention, and Research Act is a comprehensive bill that improves upon 
the Medicare ESRD program. I urge my colleagues to join with me in 
supporting this important legislation.

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