National Kidney Foundation launches initiative to eliminate racial bias in kidney function tests used for medication decisions
Executive summary: The National Kidney Foundation announced the creation of a national community to advance race‑agnostic kidney function assessment for medication‑related decisions, bringing together pharmacists, physicians, lab experts, informaticists, EHR leaders and patients. Removing race‑based adjustments from kidney function tests can reduce racial disparities in drug dosing, improve safety of medications that are cleared by the kidneys, and align clinical practice with emerging evidence‑based standards.
Who is involved: National Kidney Foundation, pharmacists, physicians, laboratory experts, informaticists, electronic health record leaders, and patient representatives.
Likely next: The community will work to implement race‑neutral eGFR calculations into clinical workflows and EHR systems, pilot the approach in selected health sites, and inform future guideline updates.
The National Kidney Foundation (NKF) has convened a multidisciplinary community that includes pharmacists, physicians, laboratory experts, informaticists, EHR leaders and patients to promote race‑agnostic assessment of kidney function. The effort seeks to replace estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) formulas that incorporate race coefficients with evidence‑based, race‑neutral alternatives, thereby supporting more equitable medication dosing for patients with chronic kidney disease. By aligning clinical practice, health‑IT systems and guideline developers, the NKF aims to reduce disparities that have historically affected drug prescribing and safety.
Timeline
- — National Kidney Foundation Launches National Community to Advance Race-Agnostic Kidney Function Assessment for Medication-Related Decisions (PR Newswire)
- — Hackers stole ‘significant’ amount of data from tech firm relied on by thousands of US hospitals and pharmacies (TechCrunch)