Findings

Congress finds the following: (1) Polycystic kidney disease (in this section referred to as PKD) is one of the most common life-threatening genetic diseases, affecting approximately 500,000 Americans and millions worldwide. (2) PKD leads to end-stage renal disease, or kidney failure, in the majority of affected individuals, necessitating dialysis and transplantation. (3) More than 5 percent of patients enrolled in the Medicare End-Stage Renal Disease program have kidney failure caused by cystic kidney disease, primarily PKD. (4) End-stage renal disease and kidney failure attributable to cystic kidney diseases, like PKD, cost Medicare an estimated $3,000,000,000 annually.