Young unveils bipartisan BETTER Kidney Care Act

America’s kidney dialysis patients would receive high-quality, integrated, coordinated services under a new care option contained in bipartisan legislation proposed by U.S. Sen. Todd Young (R-IN).

“Helping Hoosiers with end-stage renal disease [ESRD] receive improved care will result in better health outcomes and will help save lives,” Sen. Young said.

The Bringing Enhanced Treatments and Therapies to ESRD Recipients (BETTER) Kidney Care Act, S. 4574, sponsored by Sen. Young on Sept. 15 with lead cosponsor U.S. Sen. Kyrsten Sinema (D-AZ), would create an ESRD Integrated Care Demonstration to provide dialysis for Medicare ESRD beneficiaries and those who transition to transplant or hospice care, according to a one-page bill summary provided by Sen. Young’s office.

The ESRD Integrated Care Organization’s interdisciplinary team would be led by a nephrologist and assisted by the dialysis facility team, and would have the ability to further coordinate care by partnering with Medicare Advantage plans, Medicaid managed care organizations, and hospitals or academic medical centers, among others, according to the summary.

“The BETTER Kidney Care Act is a smart approach to enhancing patients’ quality of life while also saving taxpayer dollars,” said Sen. Young.

In the United States, roughly 37 million Americans suffer from chronic kidney disease, while more than 726,000 have ESRD, according to the senator’s bill summary, with approximately $114 billion a year, or 20 percent, of Medicare costs being spent on kidney disease.

The companion measure will be introduced in the U.S. House of Representatives by U.S. Reps. Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-WA), Brad Wenstrup (R-OH), and Earl Blumenauer (D-OR), according to Sen. Young’s office.