Late last night Congress passed the Comprehensive Immunosuppressive Drug Coverage for Kidney Transplant Patients Act into law! I had been waiting all day for the news to come, and when it did, I literally screamed.
This legislation won’t affect me much unless I ever lose my health insurance, but for those who can’t afford the costly anti-rejection medication post transplant, this is literally life-saving news. In fact, getting a new kidney is now an option for many who couldn’t previously afford it, or were denied because of their inability to pay.
Currently Medicare pays for a patient’s immunosuppressants for 36 months after transplant. After that, we’re on our own. But this year, NKF and others in the community showed that extending Medicare indefinitely will actually save Medicare $400 million dollars over the next ten years. So we all win. Taxpayers, kidney patients, caregivers, donors, families. I feel another woohoooooo! welling up inside of me…
I am deeply grateful for the NKF leadership and the grassroots volunteer advocacy group of which I am a part. They have been pushing for this protection for two decades; I joined the effort only three years ago, and I have been inspired by the persistence and passion of my fellow advocates. It is another example – especially in today’s context – of the importance of advocating for those who are disadvantaged so that they can receive the same privilege and protections that the rest of us enjoy.
Thank you to so many of you who have supported the advocacy effort by sponsoring my fundraisers. It takes a great big village.