Tell Congress: I'm a voter who cares about kidney issues!

With election season approaching, it is more important than ever to let your elected officials know that kidney disease is an important issue to you.

The scale of this issue is clear in the numbers: 37 million Americans have kidney disease, and most don't know they have it. Kidney disease is one of the top 10 causes of death in the United States — and it's time for our elected officials to prioritize it.

Kidney failure is expensive for patients and taxpayers. Only about 1% of Medicare beneficiaries have kidney failure, but Medicare's expenditures on these beneficiaries represent 7.2% of all Medicare spending -- $51 billion in 2019.

There is much more that Congress can do to address kidney disease in the United States.
  • We need more investment in research to find better treatments, more effective prevention, and, someday, a cure.
  • We need to make it easier for living kidney donors to give a kidney without worrying about their job or having trouble getting life insurance later.
  • We must ensure kidney patients have access to comprehensive and affordable health care.
  • We need to fight health disparities.

Please email your members of Congress today to tell them that you are a kidney voter who urges them to take decisive action to help kidney patients.
Dear Legislator,

As your constituent and a voter who has been impacted by kidney disease, I am writing to ask you to do more to address kidney disease in the United States. 37 million Americans have kidney disease, and most of them don't know that they have it. Kidney disease is one of the top 10 causes of death in the United States — and it's time for our elected officials to make it a priority.

Nearly half of new cases of kidney failure are caused by diabetes, and about a quarter of the new cases are caused by hypertension. Nearly 810,000 Americans are living with kidney failure, also known as end-stage renal disease (ESRD). Of those, nearly 570,000 are on dialysis and nearly 240,000 are living with a kidney transplant.

Kidney failure is expensive for patients and taxpayers. In 2019, the most recent year for which figures are available, Medicare spending for ESRD beneficiaries was $51 billion. Only about 1% of Medicare beneficiaries have kidney failure, but Medicare's expenditures on these beneficiaries represent 7.2% of all Medicare spending.

We are working to elevate this critical health issue -- and I am hoping you will help!

I am asking you to do two things to show your support of people with kidney disease:

1) Join the Congressional Kidney Caucus. The bipartisan Congressional Kidney Caucus plays a vital role in ensuring that the necessary federal resources are devoted toward the early detection and prevention of kidney disease, and that those Americans living with kidney disease have access to quality, affordable coverage. Please contact Co-Chairs Congresswoman Suzan DelBene (D-WA) or Congressman Larry Bucshon (R-IN) to join today.

2) Commit to supporting increased federal funding for kidney research, which is woefully underfunded. Kidney failure is treated the same way today it was half a century ago: with dialysis or with a transplant if a donor organ is available. We want new treatment options, we want more effective prevention and earlier identification of kidney disease, and ultimately, we want a cure.

Thank you in advance for helping us!

[Name]
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