In honor of World Kidney Day, DaVita Inc., the nation's largest independent provider of kidney care, announced its 2009 planned activities to help raise awareness and education about kidney disease. In order to bring attention to this silent epidemic affecting 26 million adult Americans - 90% of whom don't know they are at risk - DaVita® is launching several campaigns to help bridge the gap between those who are at risk and those who have chronic kidney disease (CKD).

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In partnership with The Kidney TRUST™ -- a nonprofit organization focused on fighting kidney disease -- DaVita is launching their 4th Annual Kidney Awareness 5K Run/Walks. The Kidney Awareness Run/Walks™ are a series 5K Run/Walks aimed at raising funds and driving home the importance of awareness and education of kidney disease. The selected cities for the 2009 Kidney Awareness Run/Walks are:

       Sept. 13: Denver, CO
       Sept. 20: Chicago, IL
       Sept. 26: Cleveland, OH
       Oct. 3: Cincinnati, OH
       Oct. 11: St Louis, MO
       Oct. 18: Sacramento, CA
       Oct. 25: Long Beach, CA
       Oct. 31: Ft. Worth, TX
       Nov. 7: Virginia Beach, VA
       Nov. 14: Washington, D.C.

2009 Kidney Awareness Fundraising Campaign: 1400 DaVita clinics will participate in a nationwide campaign to help raise funds for The Kidney TRUST to assist with their efforts in offering free kidney screenings for early detection of CKD. Early testing and detection gives those with CKD an opportunity to take control of their disease and help delay or avoid the onset of life threatening kidney failure, which would require dialysis or a kidney transplant to maintain life.

"Our 32,000 teammates (employees) are dedicated to helping patients with chronic kidney disease not only through their weekly dialysis treatments, but also by volunteering to participate in the Kidney Awareness Run/Walks to raise funds for CKD awareness and education programs," said Kent Thiry, DaVita Chairman and CEO. "We were encouraged by the success of our efforts in 2008 and are committed to educating even more people in 2009."

World Kidney Day is a global health awareness campaign focusing on the importance of our kidneys and reducing the frequency and impact of kidney disease. It is celebrated every year in more than 100 countries on 6 continents.

For more information about this year's Kidney Awareness Run/Walks, please call 1-877-444-2398.

DaVita and The Kidney Awareness Run/Walks are trademarks or registered trademarks of DaVita Inc. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners.

About The Kidney TRUST

The Kidney TRUST was founded in 2006 by DaVita Inc. The Kidney TRUST is an independent, nonprofit organization that believes everyone should be empowered to take a proactive role in their health. The Kidney TRUST seeks to reduce the advancement of chronic kidney disease (CKD) by broadly deploying cost-effective rapid-screening for CKD in non-medical settings, and providing financial assistance to people affected by CKD. For more information visit www.kidneytrust.org.

About DaVita Inc.

DaVita Inc., a FORTUNE 500® company, is a leading provider of kidney care in the United States, providing dialysis services and education for patients with chronic kidney failure and end stage renal disease. DaVita manages more than 1,400 outpatient facilities and acute units in more than 700 hospitals located in 43 states and the District of Columbia, serving approximately 110,000 patients. As part of DaVita's commitment to building a healthy, caring community, DaVita develops, participates in and donates to numerous programs dedicated to transforming communities and creating positive, sustainable change for children, families and our environment. For more information about DaVita, its kidney education and its community programs, please visit www.davita.com.

First Call Analyst:
FCMN Contact: LeAnne.Zumwalt@davita.com

SOURCE: DaVita Inc.