ACS CAN Applauds CMS Proposed Rule for Prior Authorization for Drugs and Outlines Further Improvements to Benefit Cancer Patients and Survivors

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, the American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network (ACS CAN) submitted comments in a letter to the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) applauding provisions of the 2026 Interoperability Standards and Prior Authorization for Drugs proposed rule and outlining a number of improvements for the final rule.  

In the letter, Anna Schwamlein Howard, vice president, public policy advocacy at ACS CAN, writes: 

“We applaud the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) for proposing to extend the requirements established in the 2024 Interoperability Standards and Prior Authorization final rule for the Prior Authorization Application Programming Interface (API) to prescription drugs. Including prescription drugs would simplify the prior authorization process for providers and reduce confusion and lead to more timely access for patients. We support many of the proposals outlined in the proposed rule and support CMS’s efforts to improve alignment of standards across payers. We note that the proposed rule does not extend these new requirements to Part D plans, and we encourage CMS to address this in future rulemaking.” 

In addition to expressing support for provisions of the proposed rule, ACS CAN outlined specific concerns and suggested improvements to strengthen the rule. Read the letter outlining ACS CAN's comments here. 

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