# 119-s-1173: Restore Protections for Dialysis Patients Act

119-s-1173, Restore Protections for Dialysis Patients Act, is a 119th Congress bill sponsored by Sen. Cassidy, Bill [R-LA] (R-LA); status introduced; PRIA reads it as touching household money (as of 2026-04-21).

- Canonical: https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-1173
- As of: 2026-04-21
- Plain-text twin of the page above; the HTML and this file carry the same facts.

## Facts
- Bill: 119-s-1173
- Congress: 119
- Title: Restore Protections for Dialysis Patients Act
- Status: introduced
- Introduced: 2025-03-27
- Sponsor: Sen. Cassidy, Bill [R-LA] (R-LA)
- Cosponsors: 7
- Policy area: Health
- Touches household money: yes
- Last recorded action: 2026-04-21

## Summary

**Restore Medicare Secondary Payer protections for people with end-stage renal disease (ESRD)** and stop private health plans from treating dialysis worse than other covered services. The bill clarifies that plans may not shift primary payment responsibility for dialysis to Medicare and that singling out dialysis for disfavored treatment is prohibited, while preserving a plan's discretion to exclude particular dialysis providers from its network. - People with ESRD: Private plans may not differentiate benefits or apply limitations that disparately affect dialysis care, protecting access to covered dialysis services. - Private health plans: Bars benefit rules based on ESRD diagnosis or need for renal dialysis, but lets plans decide which dialysis providers they include in networks. - Medicare program: Reinforces that Medicare should not be made the primary payer through plan actions that shift costs for dialysis onto the program. - Dialysis providers: Plans can still exclude specific renal dialysis providers from networks; enforcement follows existing nonconformance rules in 42 C.F.R. part 411.

## Cosponsors (7)

- Sen. Booker, Cory A. [D-NJ] (D-NJ), 2025-03-27T00:00:00.000Z
- Sen. Cramer, Kevin [R-ND] (R-ND), 2025-03-27T00:00:00.000Z
- Sen. Heinrich, Martin [D-NM] (D-NM), 2025-03-27T00:00:00.000Z
- Sen. Marshall, Roger [R-KS] (R-KS), 2025-09-11T00:00:00.000Z
- Sen. Hyde-Smith, Cindy [R-MS] (R-MS), 2025-10-01T00:00:00.000Z
- Sen. Budd, Ted [R-NC] (R-NC), 2025-10-29T00:00:00.000Z
- Sen. Blackburn, Marsha [R-TN] (R-TN), 2025-12-18T00:00:00.000Z

## Provisions PRIA read

- No benefit discrimination for dialysis patients: benefit, high. If enacted, this bill would stop group health plans from treating people with end-stage renal disease (ESRD) or who need dialysis differently. Plans could not cut or limit benefits or build networks in a way that singles out ESRD patients. Plans would still be allowed to choose which dialysis provi…

## Related bills

- 119-s-5066: Health Equity and Accountability Act of 2026
- 119-s-4744: Take Care of America’s Veterans Act
- 119-s-1816: Improving Seniors’ Timely Access to Care Act of 2025
- 119-sres-913: A resolution relating to the death of the Honorable Nancy Kassebaum, former United States Senator for the State of Kansas.
- 119-sres-897: A resolution honoring the life, service, and legacy of the Honorable Jon Llewellyn Kyl, former Senator for the State of Arizona.
- 119-sres-801: A resolution honoring the life and legacy of the Honorable Lindsey Olin Graham, a Senator from the State of South Carolina.

## Sources
- [119-s-1173 on Congress.gov](https://www.congress.gov/bill/119th-congress/senate-bill/1173)

## Related
- [119-s-5066: Health Equity and Accountability Act of 2026](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-5066)
- [119-s-4744: Take Care of America’s Veterans Act](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-4744)
- [119-s-1816: Improving Seniors’ Timely Access to Care Act of 2025](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-1816)
- [119-sres-913: A resolution relating to the death of the Honorable Nancy Kassebaum, former Uni…](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-sres-913)
- [119-sres-897: A resolution honoring the life, service, and legacy of the Honorable Jon Llewel…](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-sres-897)
- [119-sres-801: A resolution honoring the life and legacy of the Honorable Lindsey Olin Graham,…](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-sres-801)
- [All bills in Congress](https://policyrisk.com/legislation)

Source: PRIA, https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-1173 (as of 2026-04-21).