Washington, DC - "We believe in giving patients choice and freedom in healthcare, ensuring access to the doctors they want, the treatments they need, and the highest standard of medical care anywhere in the world." ~ President Donald J. Trump

ADVANCING KIDNEY HEALTH: President Donald J. Trump signed an executive order aimed at improving kidney health and promoting increased treatment options for American patients.

• Today, President Trump is signing an executive order launching a kidney health initiative to improve the lives of Americans suffering from kidney disease. The initiative seeks to:
  • Prevent kidney failure through better diagnosis, treatment, and preventative care.
  • Increase affordable alternative treatment options, educate patients on treatment alternatives, and encourage the development of artificial kidneys.
  • Increase access to kidney transplants by modernizing the transplant system and updating counterproductive regulations.
• Under the executive order, Medicare will test adjusting payment incentives to encourage preventative kidney care and the use of home dialysis and kidney transplants.
• President Trump is directing his Administration to develop a process to get artificial kidneys to patients in order to encourage development of such technology.
• The Administration will take action to streamline and expedite the process of kidney matching in order to help increase transplants.
• The President is beginning the process of removing financial barriers to organ donation by allowing for reimbursement of lost wages and childcare expenses of organ donors.

IMPROVING TREATMENT OPTIONS: The current quality of care for patients with kidney disease is unacceptable and treatment options are far too expensive.   

• Across America, 37 million patients suffer from chronic kidney disease and more than 726,000 have end-stage renal disease.
• Current available treatment options are too expensive and fail to provide a high quality of life.
• The mortality rate for kidney disease is far too high, with kidney disease ranked as the ninth leading cause of death in America.
• There are nearly 100,000 Americans waiting to receive a kidney transplant.
• Each year more than 100,000 Americans begin dialysis to treat end-stage renal disease, fifty percent of whom die within five years.

TAKING A NEW APPROACH: President Trump has refused to accept the status quo and has taken an innovative approach to deliver new treatment options for major diseases.

• The President has repeatedly sought to make innovative investments that help patients and ultimately lower costs in the long run.
• The Trump Administration’s pediatric cancer effort has recognized that we need a different approach to cancer treatment options for children.
• President Trump’s initiative to fight the HIV/AIDS epidemic over the next decade will improve Americans’ lives and lower healthcare spending in the long run.
• The President signed Right to Try into law, which allows terminally ill patients access to potentially lifesaving drugs.