DATE: February 9, 2022

Washington, DC (February 9, 2022) – In support of its mission to increase kidney transplants and alleviate barriers among transplant recipients and donors, the Kidney Transplant Collaborative (KTC) recently shared a wide range of potential solutions with the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS).

The KTC’s response to CMS’ request for information regarding Health and Safety Requirements for Transplant Programs, Organ Procurement Organizations and End-Stage Renal Disease Facilities highlights some of the most pressing concerns facing the transplant system today and what can be done at the national level to address them.

The KTC’s letter to CMS included the following key recommendations:

• Doing away with outdated regulations for transplant programs that are preventing certain patients from receiving kidney transplants.

• Creation of a federal living donor program that could match donors with transplant candidates, screen donors through a national network, undertake public information campaigns and pursue data collection and reporting, with the ultimate goal of increasing the number of transplants.

• Encouraging the consolidation and harmonization of transplant functions across CMS and HRSA into a single agency to create more efficiency and accountability.

• Addressing the kidney discard crisis through improved communications between transplant centers and patients awaiting a transplant, including increased communication among all providers on the patient’s medical team, and encouraging CMS to convene an expert advisory panel to identify potential solutions.

• Increasing equity in the transplant system for minorities and patients living in rural areas.

• Taking additional measures to encourage those suffering from ESRD to consider a preemptive transplant as an alternative to dialysis.

“We appreciate CMS’ attention to the issues interfering with kidney transplants and working with stakeholders to determine the best path forward,” said Dr. Louis Diamond, KTC president and board chair. “The Kidney Transplant Collaborative is committed to offering actionable solutions that will directly increase transplants and reduce some of the most significant and longstanding barriers that have negatively impacted recipients and donors.”

Dr. Diamond was also recently named to CMS’ End Stage Renal Disease Treatment Choices Learning Collaborative’s (ETCLC) Leadership Coordinating Council (LCC). In this role, he will continue to share the KTC’s input on key issues impacting the ESRD and transplant communities.

The Kidney Transplant Collaborative’s full response to the CMS request for information can be found here.

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The Kidney Transplant Collaborative (KTC) is a 501(c)(4) nonprofit organization dedicated to increasing kidney transplants and decreasing financial obstacles and other problems kidney patients, donors and their families experience with the kidney transplant process. For more details, visit the KTC website at www.kidneytransplantcollaborative.com.