Duncan transplant patient loses drug benefit
All a Duncan man knows about his organ donor is what they had in common: They were about the same age and were outdoorsmen. The Arizona man died following a motorcycle crash; his kidney and pancreas now belong to Mike Reddin.
Mike Reddin
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at a glance
BY THE NUMBERS
MEDICARE
Figures for Medicare’s private fee-for-service plans (as of July 1, 2007):
• 355,249: Number of chronic kidney failure enrollees
• $106,000: Cost of a kidney transplant
• $71,000: Per dialysis patient, including other health care needs
• $17,000: Per patient with a functioning transplant, for anti-rejection drugs and other health care needs TRANSPLANTS Oklahomans on the national transplant waiting list (as of Nov. 21)
• 436: Number waiting for a kidney
• 21: Number waiting for a kidney and pancreas Sources: Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, National Kidney Foundation, Organ Procurement and Transplantation Network, Dr. Jose Elamm, End Stage Renal Disease Network 13
WHAT’S AHEAD
Help on the way?
Bills were introduced in the U.S. House and Senate this year that would have eliminated the three-year limit on anti-rejection drug coverage, but neither bill was heard, said Troy Zimmerman, vice president of government relations for the National Kidney Foundation. The bills would have extended coverage only for the drugs, not for other health costs. Zimmerman said the change would be good economically because the drugs are cheaper than dialysis. It also would allow more people to consider a transplant and improve their quality of life.
Zimmerman hopes legislation gets passed. "The fact that they (members of President-elect Barack Obama’s administration) are going to be looking at health care coverage in a broader sense, that helps our chances,” he said.
Medicare doesn’t have a position on the issue. "The limit on the anti-rejection drugs is statutory. Congress is the boss,” agency spokeswoman Ellen Griffith said.
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Health and Fitness, Business, Personal Finance, Diabetes, Metabolic Disorders, Kidney Failure, Internal Medicine, Health Care Issues, Paying for Health Care, Insurance, Health Insurance, Kidney and Urologic Health
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