ACS CAN Volunteers Active in Top Tier Congressional Races
Amidst all of the drama this election season, there is one issue that candidates of all parties have been wanting to talk about – cancer.
ACS CAN Releases 13th Annual How Do You Measure Up Report
August 6, 2015
From New Hampshire to Hawaii, state legislatures made important progress in saving lives from cancer during their 2015 legislative sessions. But, the news was not all good as many states are still failing to pass legislation that would prevent cancer, reduce youth smoking, improve access to cancer care and significantly reduce health care costs. Those are the conclusions of ACS CAN's 13th annual How Do You Measure Up Report. The report, released at the recent National Conference of State Legislatures annual meeting, is intended to provide state lawmakers with accurate, evidence-based information policy approaches that can be passed and implemented in their state to support the fight against cancer.
- The report noted important trends both positive and negative - on many key issues, including: Five states passed legislation requiring insurance companies to cover oral (i.e. pill) forms of chemotherapy in the same manner as they cover intravenous (IV) forms of the drug. These laws are especially critical to cancer patients who donÈt live near treatment centers and who canÈt easily access IV treatment.
- No state passed bills implementing a statewide smoke-free ordinance that covers all workplaces, including restaurants and bars, and states overall are spending less than two percent of the revenue from tobacco taxes and Master Settlement Agreement payments on proven programs to reduce tobacco use.
- Five states adopted ACS CANÈs model legislation for supporting and promoting palliative care which is proven to result in a better quality of life for cancer patients