[Congressional Record Volume 163, Number 125 (Tuesday, July 25, 2017)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1048]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




      IN SUPPORT OF H.R. 3178, THE MEDICARE PART B IMPROVEMENT ACT

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                          HON. TERRI A. SEWELL

                               of alabama

                    in the house of representatives

                         Tuesday, July 25, 2017

  Ms. SEWELL of Alabama. Mr. Speaker, I rise to express my strong 
support for H.R. 3178, the Medicare Part B Improvement Act.
  I am proud to be a cosponsor of the bill introduced by Reps. Black, 
DelBene, and Thompson included in the underlying bill. This policy 
modernizes Medicare payment policies for the use of telehealth for ESRD 
related visits.
  My home state of Alabama and the neighboring states of Mississippi 
and Tennessee are home to the highest rates of kidney disease in the 
country. Expanding opportunities for home dialysis and telehealth is 
very important to these patients and their families.
  I've visited with kidney disease patients in dialysis facilities 
across my district, from small dialysis clinics to the ESRD unit at 
Children's Hospital in Birmingham. The treatment is taxing for patients 
and families, who have to go to their clinic to receive treatment 3 
days a week for 4 hours at a time to simply sustain life.
  For patients and their families, this bill will have a substantial 
impact on their quality of life, by expanding access to home dialysis 
therapy. Technology has allowed for the creation of home dialysis 
devices. Our Medicare dialysis patients deserve access to these 
advanced technologies. I strongly believe we must modernize our 
dialysis payment policies to keep pace with the rapid pace of 
innovation in so that Medicare patients are not left behind.
  I support the underlying bill and urge my colleagues to vote yes on 
the Medicare Part B Improvement Act of 2017.

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