When Will I Meet With A Doctor
After you have decided to become a kidney donor and your crossmatch results are known, you will be evaluated by a doctor, usually a nephrologist. Your evaluation will begin with a medical history and physical exam. You will have a series of lab tests to screen for kidney function, including chemistry screen, urinalysis, and urine tests for protein. You may also have a CT scan of the kidneys to evaluate your kidneys, urinary tract, and other structures in your pelvis.
Do You Have More Questions About Medicare Coverage For Kidney Transplants
Im happy to discuss your options with you. You can schedule a phone call or request information to read in an email by clicking the appropriate link below. To view some plans in your area you may qualify for, click the Compare Plans button.
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Stages Of Chronic Kidney Disease
www.kidneyfund.orgKidney DiseaseChronic Kidney Disease Stages of Chronic Kidney DiseaseMedical Advisory Committee
Please note: eGFR is an estimate of how well your kidneys are working. The way eGFR is calculated will be changing. Currently the test considers your age, sex and race, among other things. A task force led by the National Kidney Foundation and the American Society of Nephrology is working on recommendations that may remove Black race as a factor in the eGFR calculation. The task force has been seeking the input of kidney disease experts to come up with the best way to make the eGFR test as accurate as possible. American Kidney Fund advised the task force to remove race from the eGFR so there is no bias in testing kidney function. This would help to make sure that every person will receive health care that is fair and of the highest quality. When the NKF-ASN task force makes its recommendations, AKF will promptly review them and then update our educational materials.
Chronic kidney disease refers to all five stages of kidney damage, from very mild damage in stage 1 to complete kidney failure in stage 5. The stages of kidney disease are based on how well the kidneys can filter waste and extra fluid out of the blood. In the early stages of kidney disease, your kidneys are still able to filter out waste from your blood. In the later stages, your kidneys must work harder to get rid of waste and may stop working altogether.
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Who Should Get A Kidney Transplant
If you are diagnosed with kidney failure, or youre at Stage 3 CKD or Stage 4 CKD and considering a kidney transplant procedure down the line, talk to your doctor about whether or not kidney transplant surgery is right for you. If youre in otherwise good health and your doctor determines that you meet the requirements, a kidney transplant may be a good option. Generally, doctors consider a kidney transplant to be the best kidney failure treatment, whenever possible.
How To Get Life Insurance For Kidney Transplant Patients
These steps are standard methods to get life insurance from a life insurance company as a kidney transplant patient.
Research Life Insurance Policy Types
Find out what kind of life insurance you want. Term life insurance lasts for a period, usually in years. Permanent life lasts your entire life. With permanent life insurance, youll have retirement savings and investment options.
Select a Company
When you look through your life insurance policy options, start thinking about a company you want. Heres a list of the best life insurance companies:
- Banner Life
- Pacific Life
- Primerica
Some of these companies may not be in your local area, but try using our FREE comparison tool to find life insurance companies close to you.
Do you qualify for a life insurance policy?
The life insurance company will go through a few medical questions about your kidney transplant. You dont have to share your medical records right away, but they will request a medical exam.
Get a Medical Exam
If youve been to the doctor recently, theres a chance the life insurance company will accept your recent results as a medical exam. Ask the life insurance agent if its acceptable.
Youll likely get a medical exam if you havent been to the doctors office recently. After the medical exam, the life insurance company will determine your classification.
Buy a Life Insurance Policy
The life insurance company will offer you the policy with the monthly life insurance rates attached.
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Analysing Cost Of A Kidney Transplant
It’s important to consider the cost of any major surgery before a patient opts for it. Patients who opt for dialysis may need to spend almost Rs.25000 a month on 7 – 10 sessions.
It is suggested that patients check their insurance plans to check the coverage of Dialysis procedure as well as the transplant. The average cost of a kidney transplant ranges between 7 â 10 lakhs. This includes pre-transplant evaluation, the surgery itself and post-transplant recovery period. The costs generally depend on:
- Organ Recovery and Transport Charges
- Cost of dialysis before the transplant
- Hospital Infrastructure and Technology
- Recovery and Rehabilitation
- Post-transplant Medication
Patients who donât live in the vicinity of the hospital and/or have travelled from another city for the transplant also need to keep in mind the cost of stay in the new city. Most patients and their families opt to find a house on a short-term lease in close proximity to the hospital. These costs can add up over the course of a few months.
Speak to the experts, and learn more about the cost of an organ transplant Submit Enquiry
Does Medicare Part A And Part B Cover Kidney Transplant Surgery
The medical expenses involved in a kidney transplant can be extensive and you will need medical care before and after your surgery. Medicare generally covers you for all stages of your kidney transplant. If you have a living donor, generally Medicare will cover his medical expenses involved with organ donation as well. Medicare Part A and Medicare Part B generally cover different expenses involved in a kidney transplant.
Medicare Part A coverage of kidney transplants typically includes:
- Kidney registry fee
- Kidney procurement if theres no kidney donor
- Tests, labs and exams prior to surgery including tests needed to evaluate potential kidney donors
- Inpatient services in a Medicare-certified hospital
- Follow-up care after the kidney transplant
- Full cost of care of your kidney donor if you have a living donor
- Blood
Medicare Part B coverage of a kidney transplant typically includes:
- Immunosuppressive prescription drugs that lower the bodys ability to reject the kidney transplant
- Doctors care for all stages of the kidney transplant surgery
- Doctors care for your donor during his hospital stay
- Blood
- Follow-up care after the kidney transplant
Medicare Part B coverage of immunosuppressive prescription drugs is generally for a limited time after you leave the hospital following a kidney transplant. For long-term coverage of immunosuppressive prescription drugs you may need Medicare Part D coverage.
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What Is Involved In Kidney Transplant Surgery
You will be given a general anesthetic before your surgery. Until recently, the removal of a kidney required an 8 in. to 9 in. incision on one side of the body . Now, laparoscopy is usually used to remove the donor kidney. Advantages of laparoscopic kidney removal include less pain, shorter hospital stays, a more rapid return to normal activities, and a smaller, less noticeable scar.
What Steps Should I Take To Become A Kidney Donor
If you decide to become a kidney donor, samples of your blood will be drawn for testing, including your blood type and other genetic information to see how well you match the recipient. These tests may be repeated before the surgery if you decide to become a donor.
If your blood tests are good, you will meet with social workers at the transplant facility to discuss other obligations. You will be given information, such as how much time you will need to take off from work and details of surgery and the recovery process, that will help you make an informed decision. Your meetings with the social work team will be strictly confidential.
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Am I A Transplant Candidate
Determining if you are a candidate for any organ transplant requires a comprehensive evaluation, beginning with a medical record review, and the process often includes additional medical testing. If you are eligible, you will meet with several members of the transplant team, including a transplant coordinator, surgeon, and social worker, and also attend an education class on transplantation. In addition, you will need to consider the financial aspects of receiving a transplant and begin to investigate your insurance coverage .
Watch our overview of the financial aspects of organ transplant and read below for additional information.
Using Medicare And Medicaid To Pay For Expensive Surgery
Medicare
This type of government-funded insurance pays for transplants, but not everyone qualifies for coverage. It also pays for many other types of surgery, if the procedure is deemed necessary.
Patients age 65 and older, patients younger than 65 with certain disabilities, and those who have been diagnosed with end-stage renal disease qualify for Medicare. Additionally, patients may qualify if they or their spouse have paid into the Medicare system. The Medicare website www.medicare.gov provides detailed information about qualifying for coverage, and what coverage is available in each state.
Medicaid
Medicaid is government-sponsored insurance for low-income patients that is administered by individual states within federal guidelines. Medicaid coverage qualifications vary from state to state. The income limit to qualify is based on the size of the family and income level, but a patient with a low income does not necessarily qualify automatically for coverage.
If a patient does not qualify for Medicaid due to income level, he or she still may qualify for spend down Medicaid, which takes into account the amount of money being paid for health care.
A financial planner at your transplant center should be able to help you navigate the process of dealing with Medicaid.
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Life After Kidney Transplant
After surgery, patients will probably feel sore and groggy when they wake up. However, many people who have a transplant report feeling much better immediately after surgery.
Regular Follow Up
There will be constant follow ups with the nephrologist which will decline over time. But it is critical that patients regularly follow up with their doctors after the surgery during the first year.
Immunosuppressants
Patients will take a number of medications after the kidney transplant. Drugs called immunosuppressants help keep the immune system from attacking and rejecting the new kidney. Additional drugs help reduce the risk of other complications, such as infection, after the transplant.
Hygeine
It is vital for patients to take the utmost care regarding hygiene and lifestyle choices as even a small infection can cause major issues.
Survival Rate: 95%
Kidney Failure Life Expectancy
Its not possible to know exactly how long a person with kidney failure will live. Every person with kidney failure is different.
In general, a person on dialysis can expect to live for an average of 5 to 10 years as long as they follow their treatment.
Some factors that play a role in life expectancy are:
- age
- stage of kidney disease
- other coexisting conditions
A young person in midstage kidney failure who has no complicating risk factors or other conditions will likely live longer than an older individual with stage 4 or stage 5 kidney failure plus diabetes or cardiovascular disease.
Once you reach end-stage kidney failure, you will need dialysis to live. Missing even one treatment can decrease your life expectancy.
A kidney transplant is likely to last for about 5 to 10 years. Its possible to get a second transplant after the first transplant fails.
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Why Are Life Insurance Companies So Concerned About Kidney Transplants
Insurance companies are worried about kidney transplants because there was a reason you needed a kidney transplant in the first place. They will want to know the underlying health problems you experienced that necessitated a kidney transplant. Hepatitis C is one of the leading contributing factors to kidney transplants in the United States.
If you have hepatitis C and you get an organ transplant, your underlying hepatitis C medical condition will still be a factor in how well your new kidney will perform. If hepatitis C degraded the function of your original liver, it would do the same to your transplanted liver.
Were fortunate that new medications are now available that can cure hepatitis C before it causes damage to healthy livers and liver transplant recipients.
What Limitations Will I Have After I Have Donated A Kidney
Donating a kidney will not cause any limitations in your normal daily activities. After the recovery from your surgery, you will be able to resume all of your normal activities, including exercising and participating in sports.
Donating a kidney doesn’t affect a person’s fertility. For example, it won’t affect a woman’s ability to become pregnant or a man’s ability to impregnate a woman. But if a woman has donated a kidney, her risk for preeclampsia or high blood pressure during a pregnancy may be higher.
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Hospitals With Kidney Transplant Philippines Package
It is a good idea to compare the price rates of kidney surgery among hospitals. You can start with the surgeons fees as well as the operating room rates.
Capitol Medical Center Surgery Department
NKTI (National Kidney and Transplant Institute
Makati Medical Center
Perpetual Help Medical Center Las Pinas
St. Lukes Medical Center
These are just some of the hospitals that offer the operation. Other hospitals may also provide care and service with regards to kidney surgery. You should get in touch with the hospital near your location for convenience.
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How Is It Performed
After the patient will be totally numb and asleep, the surgeon will place the donor kidney in the lower abdomen in order to be connected to the iliac artery and vein of the receiver.
After this, the bladder and ureter will be added and a small catheter could be inserted in order to drain a possible excess of fluid created during the surgery. Anesthesia A general anesthesia is necessary.
Procedure duration Circa 3 hours. A specialized medical team is necessary for this procedure,
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I Have An Employer Group Health Plan
- If you are eligible for Medicare, your EGHP will be your primary insurance for 30 months after starting dialysis or having a kidney transplant. This is called a coordination period. After 30 months, your EGHP will become your secondary insurance and Medicare will become primary.
- When should I apply for Medicare?
You can apply for Medicare when you first start dialysis or wait and apply closer to the end of the 30-month coordination period. Once you apply you will be responsible for the monthly Part B premiums.
If you are planning to have a transplant and want Medicare to help pay for your immunosuppressant medications you will need to apply for Medicare part A and B when you become eligible.
- Insurance Choices for Dialysis and Transplant Patients with Private Insurance
Cobra Extended Employer Group Coverage
If you are insured by an employer group health plan and you must leave your job or reduce your work hours, you may qualify for extended coverage through COBRA . This federal law requires certain group health plans to extend coverage for 18 to 36 months after benefits end. This requirement is limited to companies employing 20 or more people. You pay the full cost of the premiums for the group health plan. Learn more by contacting your employers benefits office or visit the federal Department of Labor Web site >
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Whats The Best Life Insurance For Kidney Transplant Patients
According to the United Network for Organ Sharing, 823,406 kidneys have been transplanted between January 1, 1988, and October 31, 2020. Lets examine the totals by the age of kidney transplant patients.
Kidney Transplants by Age
The age group that needs kidney transplants the most were patients between the ages of 50 and 64. Following behind them are people who are between 35 and 49.
In the following sections, well talk about life insurance policies best for kidney transplant patients between 35 and 64.
Is There Any Assistance Available For Lost Wages Travel And Lodging
There is a chance that living donors might experience lost wages during their recovery period, which can be a big expense. Living donors are typically responsible for any time lost from work, unless their employer is able to provide paid leave or allow the donor to use short-term disability. Some donors use a combination of vacation time, sick leave and/or short term disability during their recovery period. The NKF suggests that you discuss these issues with:
- Your transplant center
- Your employer’s Human Resources department
For help with travel and lodging you may qualify for assistance through the National Living Donor Assistance Program. This program provides financial assistance to those who want to donate an organ but are not able to afford the travel and subsistence expenses associated with living organ donation.
For help with lost wages to help cover expenses such as: mortgage or rent, utilities, car payment or insurance you may qualify for assistance through the American Transplant Foundation. The maximum amount of a grant is $700.
If a living donor donates at an NKR Donor Shield Center, OR if they are involved in an NKR swap between transplant centers, they will automatically be eligible for Donor Shield Coverage. This includes:
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