A house RESOLUTION

 

TO RECOGNIZE MARCH 2026 AS "CHRONIC KIDNEY DISEASE AWARENESS MONTH" IN SOUTH CAROLINA IN ORDER TO RAISE AWARENESS OF THE NEED FOR RESEARCH, SCREENING PROGRAMS, AND ACCESS TO CARE FOR INDIVIDUALS WHO SUFFER FROM CHRONIC KIDNEY DISEASE.

 

Whereas, more than one in seven individuals in the United States, totaling approximately 37 million Americans, are estimated to have chronic kidney disease (CKD), and approximately 90% of those individuals are unaware that they have CKD; and

 

Whereas, while the two most common causes of kidney disease are hypertension and heart disease, the third-leading cause of kidney disease is glomerulonephritis, often caused by rare immune-mediated kidney diseases such as IgA nephropathy (IgAN)-mediated and Apolipoprotein L1 (APOL1)-mediated kidney disease gene; and

 

Whereas, patients with glomerular diseases frequently advance to more costly and more debilitating later stages of kidney disease, including end-stage renal disease (ESRD), more quickly than patients with CKD in general; and

 

Whereas, 90% of patients with CKD stages 1-3 are undiagnosed, and when diagnosed, such patients are often in late stages of the disease, when irreversible damage to the kidneys has already occurred; and

 

Whereas, it is imperative to improve diagnosis and treatment of CKD through community-based programs that address awareness, diagnosis, and treatment of chronic kidney disease. Now, therefore,

 

Be it resolved by the House of Representatives:

 

That the members of the South Carolina House of Representatives, by this resolution, recognize March 2026 as "Chronic Kidney Disease Awareness Month" in South Carolina in order to raise awareness of the need for research, screening programs, and access to care for individuals who suffer from chronic kidney disease.

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