The Kidney PATIENT Act of 2024 delays Medicare's implementation of a policy that would require certain oral-only kidney disease medications to be covered under the standard dialysis payment system rather than through separate drug coverage. The bill pushes back the deadline from January 1, 2025 to January 1, 2027, specifically for oral medications used to manage serum phosphate levels in patients with end-stage renal disease who are on Medicare. This delay primarily affects kidney disease patients receiving dialysis treatment and the dialysis facilities that treat them. The legislation also requires the Department of Health and Human Services to submit a comprehensive report to Congress within one year studying how Medicare beneficiaries with kidney disease are currently using and paying for these oral medications, including data on treatment adherence, coverage gaps, and related health outcomes. The report will help inform future policy decisions about how these medications should be covered under Medicare.
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