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NASHVILLE, Tenn.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--July 23, 2004-- Renal Care Group, Inc. (NYSE:RCI - News) called legislation (H.R. 4927), introduced today in the U.S. House of Representatives by Reps. Dave Camp (R-MI) and Bill Jefferson (D-LA), "life-saving" for the growing number of Americans suffering with kidney disease. A companion bill, S. 2614, was introduced July 7 in the Senate by Senators Kent Conrad (D-ND) and Rick Santorum (R-PA).
Renal Care Group, a specialized dialysis service company that provides care to more than 28,000 patients with kidney disease, praised Reps. Jefferson and Camp for their efforts to modernize Medicare's End-Stage Renal Disease (ESRD) program.
"More than 400,000 people in this country suffer from kidney failure, and a disproportionate number of those people are minority Americans," said Dr. Raymond M. Hakim, M.D., Ph.D., Renal Care Group's Chief Medical Officer. "This bill provides hope to patients suffering from this disease by bringing Medicare's ESRD program into the 21st century. The growing incidence of diabetes and high blood pressure, fueled by the obesity epidemic, makes this legislation a critical part of our nation's health care agenda."
Upon introducing the bill, Rep. Camp, lead sponsor of the legislation said, "As important as the ESRD program is, it has not kept pace with the rest of Medicare. Last year we worked to modernize the Medicare program, yet we did not address some of the most pressing issues within the ESRD program. The comprehensive bill we introduce today seeks to resolve those problems."
Rep. Jefferson, co-sponsor of the legislation, noted that the bill provides "support for education programs that will help patients make informed choices about their treatment and learn important self-management skills to improve their quality of life." The bill also "seeks to stabilize the economics of the program and to create incentives to improve the quality of care patients receive."
Studies show that kidney disease disproportionately affects African American and Hispanic individuals. African Americans constitute approximately 12 percent of the total U.S. population, but they compromise 32 percent of all patients with kidney failure. Experts say that the existing Medicare ESRD program will not be able to support the projected increase in patients with kidney disease unless Medicare is modernized.
Renal Care Group, Inc. hailed the legislation as a critical investment in the lives of patients who depend on life-saving dialysis to stay alive. "We are pleased that these members of Congress have acknowledged the looming crisis facing kidney patients in America. H.R. 4927 will save lives and ensure access to high quality therapies for patients with kidney failure." Dr. Hakim continued, "We join with other members of the dialysis industry and encourage representatives to participate in the sponsorship of this legislation. We hope that legislators will visit our dialysis facilities to see and understand the hardships endured by patients with chronic and acute kidney disease."
Additional co-sponsors of the House bill include Rep. Phil English (R-PA), Rep. Earl Pomeroy (D-ND), and Rep. Richard Neal (D-MA).
Renal Care Group, Inc. is a specialized dialysis services company that provides care to patients with kidney disease. The Company treats over 28,000 patients at more than 390 owned outpatient dialysis facilities, in addition to providing acute dialysis services at more than 190 hospitals. Over 8,000 associates provide services across the Company's 31-state network. More information about Renal Care Group, Inc. may be found at www.renalcaregroup.com.
Contact:
Renal Care Group, Inc., Nashville
Terry L. Proveaux, 615-345-5577
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