Washington, D.C.—As part of a broader health care package the administration issued an executive order today to preserve health coverage protections for people with pre-existing conditions should the Supreme Court invalidate the Affordable Care Act (ACA).
A statement from Lisa Lacasse, president of the American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network (ACS CAN) follows:
“The Executive Order on pre-existing conditions falls far short of the protections already in place under the Affordable Care Act. The ACA’s rules against insurance denials or sky-high premiums based on someone’s health history have, for the last decade, been an essential lifeline to millions of American cancer patients and survivors. These patients cannot go back to a world wherein their ability to access lifesaving treatment is tied to an insurance market that is again allowed to restrict, rescind or reject their care. Should the administration succeed in its case to throw out the law, the executive order will offer no guaranteed patient protections in its place.
“On behalf of the 17 million American cancer survivors alive today and the more than 1.8 million Americans who will be diagnosed with cancer this year, we urge the president and Congress to put patients first and seek bipartisan, legislative solutions to our nation’s urgent health care issues.”