Access to Dialysis Care among the Uninsured - GA and FL

[LeBeau]

There are a couple emerging state issues involving access to dialysis care among the uninsured, as two large public hospital systems – Grady Memorial in Atlanta, and Jackson Memorial in Miami – struggle with closing their dialysis facilities due to severe budget issues.  In both cases, a significant amount of the patients are undocumented immigrants.

In both situations, patients are still accessing care through avenues such as extended contracts, charity care and dialyzing through the ER.  In Atlanta, however, the hospital helped pay for relocation of several patients back to their homeland for dialysis care, creating even more debate and media attention.  For example, there was a story this week in the Atlanta Journal Constitution featuring individual patient plights during the Grady closure process.

It is important to note that this issue remains a broader societal issue, for the solution is much bigger than dialysis care alone, and highlights the necessity of addressing health care reform on both a national and state level.  Certainly, there needs to be help for those who struggle to access healthcare in the United States.

The issue of undocumented immigrants' access to healthcare in the US is a societal issue that has become even more prominent during tough economic times.

This is a very complex, growing societal issue across our entire healthcare system that merits a compassionate, comprehensive solution.

With regard to dialysis care, we hope the entire community can work together to ensure patients are able to access some form of care -- whether it be Medicare, the state Medicaid programs, emergency care, or other types of insurance or patient assistance programs that might be available.

Many states have different programs and eligibility requirements for accessing care.  The health care community is usually aware of various options available and helps to provide patients with information on the option that best fits their eligibility requirements.

Most important, in both of these situations, patients are able to access dialysis care.     

It is essential that all private and government organizations continue to work together to ensure these patients are able to access the options they qualify for within our healthcare system.