This bill, titled the "Kidney Disease Education Access Expansion Act of 2026," aims to significantly expand access to kidney disease education services under both Medicare and private health insurance. For Medicare, it broadens eligibility for these services to include individuals with hypertension, diabetes, any stage of chronic kidney disease , or other risk factors, moving beyond the current restriction to only Stage IV CKD patients. The legislation also expands the types of qualified providers who can furnish these services, including physician assistants, nurses, dietitians, and community health workers, and allows for individual or group education sessions , including the presence of caregivers. The scope of Medicare-covered kidney disease education is expanded to include topics like therapeutic options to slow disease progression, caregiver training for transplant recipients, and basic post-transplant self-care. It integrates screening for chronic kidney disease and referrals for education into both the Initial Preventive Physical Examination and the Annual Wellness Visit . Furthermore, the bill removes the previous limit of six education sessions, allowing the Secretary to determine an appropriate number, and permits these services to be delivered via telehealth , with Medicare paying 100% of the lesser of the actual charge or the fee schedule amount. To ensure effectiveness, the bill establishes a working group to develop methodologies for measuring patient benefit and educational outcomes from kidney disease education, leading to a comprehensive assessment framework by the Secretary. This framework will guide continuous improvement of the services. Crucially, the legislation also amends the Public Health Service Act to require that private health insurance plans cover these expanded kidney disease education services as a preventive benefit , without cost-sharing, with all changes taking effect for services furnished or plan years beginning on or after January 1, 2027.