Letter: Bill supports biomarker testing
This letter originally ran in the Lincoln Journal Star.
News
An Important Vote
October 13, 2009
With passage of a bill in the Senate Finance Committee, cancer patients and those impacted by cancer are one step closer to seeing meaningful health care reform.
ACS CAN has worked hard to ensure that many of our key policy principles are included in this legislation.
The bill that passed today takes important steps to remove cost barriers by:
- Ending arbitrary annual and lifetime caps on benefits
- Reducing or eliminating co-pays for preventive services including mammograms and colonoscopies
- Limiting premium rating based on health status and age
However, ACS CAN remains concerned that middle-income families could be forced to pay more than 25 percent of their annual income on premiums and out-of-pocket costs in the event that a family member is diagnosed with cancer or another serious illness
Now is not the time to start patting ourselves back for what we have achieved so far.ξ Moving forward, the partisan rhetoric will increase as will the volume of the dissent.ξ We need to continue reminding our Representatives and Senators to choose patients over politics.ξ Visit fightcancer.org/healthcare every few days to see what more you can do to help make meaningful health care reform a reality.
While we are closer than we have ever been, there is still much to be done.ξ We need action now, not later on health care reform and we'll need your help to finish the job.