President Trump Signs Executive Order Aimed at Improving Kidney Health
Wednesday, July 10, 2019
WASHINGTON, D.C. – The American Society of Transplantation (AST), representing a majority of the nation's healthcare professionals involved in the field of solid organ transplantation, strongly applaud today's kidney patient-focused Executive Order from President Donald Trump and his healthcare team.
Today's health policy announcements will hopefully serve to empower kidney patients, their families, and those individuals donating or awaiting a lifesaving donor organ.
AST President Emily Blumberg, MD, stated today, "The AST strongly commends the Administration, Secretary of HHS Azar, as well as the cadre of bipartisan and bicameral leaders in the U.S. Congress to strengthen and improve access to kidney transplantation."
Dr. Blumberg further stated, "AST is grateful for the leadership and steadfast commitment of HHS to focus on the most important aspect of elevating kidney care and transplantation – the patients, donors, and their families."
President Donald Trump signed an executive order today that aims to increase the number of kidney transplants completed each year, protect living donors, provide new payment strategies, and shift financial incentives away from dialysis corporations.
President Trump said that the goal of this order is to increase the number of available kidneys by protecting living donors through offering reimbursements for expenses and improving organ recovery. The President also said that this order will improve the lives of dialysis patients by promoting home dialysis and prioritizing transplants over dialysis.
Following the President’s order, Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar, whose father experienced dialysis and received a kidney transplant from a living donor, said during questions that the Trump Administration supports extending the coverage of immunosuppressive medications past the 36-month limit.
President Trump also said that he supports efforts that could lead to the creation of an artificial kidney.
The AST is excited to see initiatives focused on transplantation and organ donation and looks forward to the effective implementation of these policies.