AUSTIN, Texas—The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services and the Texas department of State Health Services will begin the certification process to open 22 dialysis clinics across Texas, according to a July 28 news release from the Texas Kidney Care Coalition.
"Opening these new state-of-the-art facilities will go a long way towards helping Texans with kidney failure live life to the fullest," said Jess Hall, president of the Texas Division of the National Kidney Foundation. "With additional facilities accessible, patients can receive dialysis treatment closer to home and at the time slot that works best for their schedule and lifestyle.”
An additional 38 dialysis clinics are still sitting idle, waiting for certification from the state. More than 32,000 Texans have end-stage renal disease, according to the Texas Kidney Care Coalition.
"We commend CMS and the many Texas state officials who deserve credit for recognizing the certification backlog problem—with delays of up to 18 months—and then acting collegially in the public interest to greatly improve access to quality dialysis care for patients in these 22 affected communities," said Robert Hootkins, MD, medical director of Fresenius Medical Care Austin North.
To push for the certification process, 27 Texas representatives from the U.S. House of Representatives and both senators signed a letter to CMS.
"CMS's decision to begin work on the accumulation of the ESRD Medicare certifications is a wonderful first step that will help kidney patients on Medicare receive better access to care,” said Rep. Mike Conaway (R-11th), Vice-Chair of the Congressional Kidney Caucus and one of the members of Congress who signed the letter to CMS. “This will also provide much needed jobs to many Texans in the medical community, stimulate local economies, and provide stability to the ESRD providers that wish to serve the growing number of patients with kidney failure in our state. I applaud the CMS officials for taking the lead on this important cause."
