American Kidney Fund's Statement on U.S. Preventive Services Task Force Draft Research Plan on Chronic Kidney Disease Screening

ROCKVILLE, Md. (Feb. 15, 2023) — LaVarne A. Burton, President and CEO of the American Kidney Fund (AKF), issued the following statement about the draft research plan on chronic kidney disease (CKD) screening by the United States Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF), an independent panel that makes evidence-based recommendations about clinical preventive services:

"With millions of people in the United States at risk for kidney disease – whether that's because they have diabetes, high blood pressure, family history, or some other rare or unknown cause – the American Kidney Fund supports CKD screening recommendations that, if implemented, would greatly improve the ability to catch kidney disease early and slow the progression of this life-altering disease.

"More than 800,000 people in the U.S. live with kidney failure and rely on dialysis or a transplant to survive. We broadly support the USPSTF's draft research plan, particularly its proposed approach to assessing health equity. While kidney disease spares no racial or ethnic group, kidney failure disproportionately affects Black and Hispanic people in particular.

"We thank the USPSTF for undertaking this urgent work to address the kidney disease crisis in the United States through proactive, potentially life-saving prevention measures."

AKF's full comment submitted to USPSTF regarding the draft research plan may be viewed here.