Press Room

West Virginia Lawmakers Can and Must Do Better Now to Protect West Virginians' Health

Earlier today, cancer survivors, medical professionals and patient advocates from across Delaware convened in Dover at Legislative Hall as a part of ‘Delaware Advocacy Day.’ The main focus of Advocacy Day, which was hosted by the American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network (ACS CAN) and the Alzheimer’s Association (ALZ), was for volunteers to connect directly with legislators and ask for their support of Senate Bill 120, a bipartisan proposal to improve Delawareans’ access to biomarker testing.

The one-house budget proposals revealed a clear divide in the Legislature’s approach to the equitable treatment of disease. The New York State Senate flatly rejected the governor’s proposal to roll back Medicaid coverage criteria for biomarker testing, heeding the calls of cancer survivors, patient advocates and public health organizations, like the American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network (ACS CAN). The Assembly took a more mixed approach accepting parts of the Governor’s proposed language while rejecting others.  

Earlier today, legislation was introduced in the New Jersey Assembly as a companion to Senate Bill 773, proposing to increase the state’s investment in the New Jersey Commission on Cancer Research (NJCCR). Assembly Bill 4579 would establish a dedicated, non-lapsing investment in the amount of $10 million, utilizing a greater proportion of the state tobacco tax revenue to do so. With bills now moving in both chambers, survivors and advocates with the American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network (ACS CAN) are encouraged by the growing momentum to expand support for cancer research and accelerate lifesaving innovations.