--- title: SR 844. FSGS Awareness Day; recognize June 9, 2026 collection: bills id: 2025-2026/sr844 cite_as: SR 844, 2025-2026 Regular Session (Ga.) canonical_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/sr844 md_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/sr844.md text_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/sr844/text source_url: https://www.legis.ga.gov/legislation/73549 date: 2026-02-25 status: introduced corpus_version: bills-2026-09-13 license: Public record of the Georgia General Assembly, via LegiScan; see about.md publisher: Georgia Commons, an independent project of Georgia Civic Data. Not the State of Georgia. Not legal advice. up: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026.md previous: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/sr843.md next: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/sr845.md index: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/index.md omitted: votes and history omitted_chars: 95 omitted_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/sr844.md?full=1 bill_number: SR 844 session: 2025-2026 Regular Session session_slug: 2025-2026 chamber: Senate bill_type: resolution status_date: 2026-02-24 last_action: Senate Read and Referred sponsors: - John Albers - Kay Kirkpatrick - Ben Watson - Shawn Still - Timothy Bearden - Kenya Wicks - Ed Setzler - Blake Tillery - Clint Dixon - Chuck Payne - Kim Jackson - Randy Robertson - Jason T. Dickerson - Ricky Williams - Chuck Hufstetler text_version: Introduced has_text: true legiscan_url: https://legiscan.com/GA/bill/SR844/2025 upstream_id: 2123605 summaries_model: claude-sonnet-5 topic_tags: - kidney disease - public health awareness - rare diseases - health disparities --- # SR 844. FSGS Awareness Day; recognize June 9, 2026 ## Text Senate Resolution 844 By: Senators Albers of the 56th, Kirkpatrick of the 32nd, Watson of the 1st, Still of the 48th, Bearden of the 30th and others A RESOLUTION Recognizing June 9, 2026, as FSGS Awareness Day in Georgia; and for other purposes. WHEREAS, approximately 1 in 7 American adults have chronic kidney disease, and the third leading cause of chronic kidney disease is glomerulonephritis, often caused by rare kidney diseases such as focal segmental glomerulosclerosis (FSGS); and WHEREAS, focal segmental glomerulosclerosis is a condition referring to the scarring in the kidneys, often leading to a difficult journey that can in many cases result in kidney failure, requiring dialysis, transplant, and often cycles of remissions and relapse; and WHEREAS, 50 percent of patients with FSGS require dialysis or a kidney transplant within 5–10 years of their diagnosis; and WHEREAS, FSGS is a severe disease because it often progresses rapidly to kidney failure and even for patients with primary FSGS who receive a kidney transplant, FSGS can recur in their transplanted kidney up to 50 percent of the time; and WHEREAS, FSGS can be diagnosed at any age, but is most commonly diagnosed in adults rather than in children and most prevalent in adults over 45 years old; and WHEREAS, FSGS is a burden on our healthcare system, with a 2019 study estimating that FSGS costs Medicaid, Medicare, and private health insurance about $2 billion annually in direct medical costs, not including indirect and quality of life costs; and WHEREAS, according to the RaDaR Database, rare kidney diseases like FSGS make up just 5-10 percent of chronic kidney disease patients but account for approximately 30 percent of kidney failures; and WHEREAS, many patients face delays in being diagnosed with FSGS, due both to the difficulty of the rare disease diagnostic odyssey averaging 5-7 years and challenges in accessing nephrology care that specializes in rare kidney diseases as there is currently a shortage in the United States; and WHEREAS, FSGS disproportionately impacts minority populations, including African Americans, often occurring at a rate 4–5 times higher than white Americans; and WHEREAS, because of certain variants of the APOL1 gene that significantly increase the risk of developing FSGS and other kidney diseases, and these high-risk variants are found almost exclusively in individuals of African ancestry, FSGS contributes to the disproportionate burden of kidney disease in Black communities; and WHEREAS, FSGS is a significant burden not just to the health and lives of patients and their families, but also incurs great challenges for the healthcare system and healthcare financing of Georgia; and WHEREAS, there is new hope for patients with FSGS, with clinical trials underway for products that may delay progression of FSGS and the onset of kidney disease, including the potential for FDA approved therapies in the near future, and significant progress being made by scientists, regulators, patient groups, and industry through the PARASOL Project to validate proteinuria as an indicator of improvement in patients; and WHEREAS, patients, families, advocacy organizations like NephCure, healthcare providers, industry, and researchers are working tirelessly to raise awareness, promote early detection, and develop new innovative therapies for FSGS and other rare kidney disease patients living in Georgia; and WHEREAS, FSGS Awareness Day is designated to raise awareness of FSGS, provide support and inspiration to patients and families struggling with the disease, and to promote the efforts needed for better diagnosis and access to future treatments that can transform the course of the disease. NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE SENATE that the members of this body recognize June 9, 2026, as FSGS Awareness Day in Georgia. BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Secretary of the Senate is authorized and directed to make appropriate copies of this resolution available for distribution to the public and the press. ## Summaries written by Georgia Commons The following was written by claude-sonnet-5 from the text above and is not part of the resolution. Quote the text, not the summary. A Georgia Senate resolution would designate June 9, 2026 as FSGS Awareness Day, drawing attention to a rare kidney disease that disproportionately affects Black Georgians and often leads to kidney failure. ### Plain-language summary This resolution does not change any law. It formally recognizes June 9, 2026 as FSGS Awareness Day in Georgia, drawing attention to focal segmental glomerulosclerosis (FSGS), a rare kidney disease that causes scarring in the kidneys and often leads to dialysis or transplant. The resolution cites statistics on FSGS, including that about half of patients need dialysis or a transplant within 5 to 10 years, that it disproportionately affects African Americans due to certain gene variants, and that it costs the healthcare system roughly $2 billion a year. It directs the Secretary of the Senate to make copies available to the public and press, but creates no funding, program, or legal requirement. ### What it does - Formally recognizes June 9, 2026 as FSGS Awareness Day in the state of Georgia. - Directs the Secretary of the Senate to prepare and distribute copies of the resolution to the public and press. - Creates no new law, funding, or state program; it is a symbolic statement by the Senate. ### Who it affects Patients diagnosed with FSGS and other rare kidney diseases, their families, nephrology healthcare providers, and advocacy groups like NephCure. The resolution's language also highlights African American Georgians, who face disproportionately higher rates of FSGS due to certain genetic risk factors. ### Why it matters While the resolution carries no legal or funding changes, official recognition can raise public awareness of FSGS, a disease that often goes undiagnosed for years and disproportionately harms Black communities, potentially encouraging earlier diagnosis and support for affected Georgians. ### Key provisions - The resolution's whereas clauses describe FSGS, its health impacts, diagnostic delays, and its disproportionate effect on African American patients due to APOL1 gene variants. - The resolved clause formally designates June 9, 2026 as FSGS Awareness Day in Georgia. - A further resolved clause directs the Secretary of the Senate to make copies available to the public and press. ## Status - Status: Introduced (2026-02-24) - Last action: Senate Read and Referred (2026-02-25) - Sponsors: John Albers, Kay Kirkpatrick, Ben Watson, Shawn Still, Timothy Bearden, Kenya Wicks, Ed Setzler, Blake Tillery, Clint Dixon, Chuck Payne, Kim Jackson, Randy Robertson, Jason T. Dickerson, Ricky Williams, Chuck Hufstetler - Official page: https://www.legis.ga.gov/legislation/73549 > The history, votes, and amendments (95 characters) are at https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/sr844.md?full=1