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Bill Would Close Medicare Colorectal Cancer Screening Loophole
Washington, D.C.—A bill before Congress would guarantee Medicare recipients can access life-saving colorectal cancer screenings without cost-sharing. March is Colorectal Cancer Awareness Month and throughout the month, ACS ... cancer and save lives, but evidence shows any cost sharing can deter people from getting screened. Currently, Medicare covers the full cost of routine screening colonoscopies. However, if a polyp is found and removed during a screening colonoscopy, individuals who have benefits through ...
House Votes on Legislative Package to Protect and Improve Access to Affordable Health Care
WASHINGTON, D.C.—Today the U.S. House of Representatives is expected to vote on a legislative package aimed at protecting and improving access to affordable health care and prescription ... this package would stop an administration rule that extends the availability of short-term, limited duration insurance plans (STLD). These plans can deny or charge people more for coverage based on their health status, are exempt from covering essential health services, like prescription ... Act of 2019 as a way to address an important barrier to developing generic and biosimilar drug therapies and improve patient access to lower cost drugs. A statement from Lisa Lacasse, president of ACS CAN follows: “The bills under consideration today offer Congress the chance to ...
New Report Shows Cancer Patients Struggle to Afford Treatment
Washington, D.C., —A new report released today by the American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network (ACS CAN) and Georgetown University Center on Health Insurance Reforms shows that while opportunities for coverage have improved, cancer patients still struggle with significant financial challenges in affording their treatment despite substantial reductions in out-of-pocket costs and patient protections under current law. The report, Navigating the Coverage Experience and Financial Challenges for Cancer ... patients to meet in a short amount of time. Patients and financial navigators also often find it difficult to determine what a procedure will cost ahead of time. Navigators report that while most cancer treatment is now covered by insurers, plans are increasingly implementing medical ...
Asian American & Pacific Islander Volunteer Caucus Health Disparities Information
... Volunteer Caucus > Health Disparities Information The Asian American & Pacific Islander community experiences an unequal cancer burden. ACS CAN Reducing Cancer Disparities in AANHPI Communities Information about how ACS CAN is working to reduce cancer disparities in Asian American, ... Facts & Figures, Asian Americans, Native Hawaiians, and Pacific Islanders, 2024 A 2024 report from the American Cancer Society details the rates of new cancer cases and the rates of cancer deaths among Asian Americans, Native Hawaiians, and Pacific Islanders (AANHPIs). Facts on our Fight: Cancer Disparities in Asian, Asian ...
New Survey Finds Affordability Leading Policy Priority for Cancer Patients and Survivors
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Protecting free preventive cancer screenings and reducing the burden of medical debt are the top issues of concern for cancer patients and survivors today, according to a new survey by the American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network (ACS CAN) that asked participants to select their leading policy priorities for the year. Policies to address the high costs of cancer have grown in ... reflecting the urgency to address this issue in the U.S. In this most recent Survivor Views survey, 52% of respondents named protecting no-cost preventive care as one of their top three policy priorities, compared to 37% in 2020, while the importance of addressing medical debt ...
U.S. District Court Ruling Jeopardizes Access to Proven, Life-Saving Cancer Screenings
... District Court Judge Reed O’Connor issued a ruling that may lead Affordable Care Act-compliant health plans to deny coverage for or reinstate cost-sharing for certain preventive health services. The ruling declared the method of appointment of officers to the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force unconstitutional, meaning its recommendations may no longer be guaranteed ... colorectal, cervical, and lung cancer. A statement from Lisa Lacasse, president of the American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network (ACS CAN) follows: “This ruling threatens to erode more than a decade of progress reducing cancer deaths and suffering. Having guaranteed, no-cost ...
Cancer Advocates Urge the President and Congress to Prioritize Affordable Health Care in Infrastructure Package
Washington, D.C.—April 28, 2020 —The American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network (ACS CAN) is urging President Biden and Congress to work together to prioritize access to affordable health care in any forthcoming infrastructure legislation. ACS CAN sent a letter to the White House and Congressional leadership ahead of the president’s address to Congress detailing several policies that would help more Americans prevent, detect, and treat cancer successfully. The letter calls for making permanent the expanded eligibility and generosity of subsidies to cover the costs of marketplace health plans—policies that have contributed to more than a half million people gaining health care ...
New Legislation Halts Surprise Bills for People with Medicare Coverage
Washington, D.C. – March 6, 2019 – Bipartisan legislation introduced today in the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives would ensure that surprise out-of-pocket expenses are not a barrier to lifesaving colorectal cancer screenings for seniors on Medicare. March is Colorectal Cancer Awareness Month and American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network (ACS CAN) volunteers are urging lawmakers to support and pass the Removing Barriers to Colorectal Cancer Screening Act, authored by Representatives ... Roger Wicker (R-Miss.), Ben Cardin (D-Md.) and Susan Collins (R-Maine). The Removing Barriers to Colorectal Cancer Screening Act would eliminate cost sharing for seniors on Medicare who are hit with a surprise bill during a routine screening colonoscopy when a polyp is discovered and removed ...
Patient and Medical Professional Organizations Applaud Administration’s Decision to Defend Access to Preventive Health Services in US Supreme Court Braidwood Case
Washington, D.C. - Last night, the Solicitor General’s office filed its merits brief in the U.S. Supreme Court case of Braidwood Management v. Kennedy , outlining its intention to defend the provision of the Affordable Care Act (ACA) that requires most private insurers to cover preventive services recommended by the United States Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) without cost sharing by patients. Organizations representing millions of patients with serious health conditions and thousands of health care professionals ... applaud the administration’s decision to continue to defend the vital provision of the ACA. Research has proven that any cost sharing can be a deterrent to accessing critical prevention and early detection and ultimately puts lives at risk. According to a recent American Cancer ...
Oklahoma Cigarette Price Increase Will Reduce Cancer Burden in State
Washington, D.C., — Today, Oklahoma Governor Mary Fallin signed a bill into law that will increase the price of cigarettes by $1.50 per pack. In addition to funding state health initiatives, full implementation of this increase can generate significant revenue for Oklahoma. A statement from Chris Hansen, president of ACS CAN, follows: “The $1.50 increase in the price of ... that reducing the use of this deadly product should be a priority across the country. If appropriately implemented and enforced, the extra $1.50 cost per pack will save an estimated 16,700 lives in Oklahoma and keep more than 28,000 kids from becoming addicted adult smokers. The increase is ...