Advocacy | KFWNY

Public Advocacy

The Kidney Foundation of WNY advocates for the needs and interests of people with kidney disease - including those on dialysis and transplant patients - at the local, state and national level.

Advocacy Partners

The Kidney Foundation of WNY is affiliated with Donate Life New York State, a non-profit organization comprised of organ and tissue recovery organizations, health professionals and individuals whose lives have been affected by donation. Donate Life NYS serves as the statewide liaison organization to Donate Life America. The Kidney Foundation collaborates with Donate Life NYS on multiple advocacy efforts, especially those pertaining to the New York State Donate Life Registry, organ donation and transplantation.

An advisory committee of stakeholders from the kidney patient, transplant recipient, living donor and medical professional communities provides guidance to the Kidney Foundation of WNY on advocacy and policy positions.

National Legislation

As of June 2026

Living Donor Protection Act (S. 1552 & H.R. 4583)

First proposed in 2012, the bipartisan Living Donor Protection Act aims to remove barriers faced by people considering living organ donation.

As drafted, the bill would prevent life insurance policies, disability insurance policies, and long-term care insurance policies from limiting coverage, increasing costs of denying coverage to people based on their status as living organ donors alone. The bill would also instruct the Secretary of Health and Human Services to update materials related to living organ donation in order to educate the public on the benefits and risks of living organ donation and its impact on access to insurance.

Related legislation (H.R. 4582) would amend the Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993 and title 5, United States Code, to clarify that organ donation surgery qualifies as a serious health condition, ensuring that living organ donation is among the conditions eligible for unpaid, job-protected medical leave from work.

The Kidney Foundation of WNY thanks local members of Congress Sen. Kirsten E. Gillibrand (D-NY) and Rep. Claudia Tenney (R-NY-24) for cosponsoring this important legislation.

Track the act's progress in the Senate and in the House of Representatives.

Restore Protections for Dialysis Patients Act (H.R. 2199 & S. 1173)

The U.S. Supreme Court’s 2022 decision in the case of Marietta v. DaVita struck down provisions of the Medicare Secondary Payer Act. This decision allows insurance companies to limit coverage of kidney care services, including dialysis.

The Restore Protections for Dialysis Patients Act, first introduced in 2023, is aimed at restoring the Medicare Secondary Payer Act protections for ESRD patients by ensuring that private health plans do not discriminate against such patients or adversely classify dialysis as compared to other covered medical services.

The Kidney Foundation of WNY thanks local members of Congress Rep. Claudia Tenney (R-NY-24) and Rep. Nicholas A. Langworthy (R-NY-23) for becoming cosponsors of this important legislation.

Track the act’s progress in the House and in the Senate.