Provisions Will Improve Access to Care for Families Affected by Cancer
Washington, D.C. – September 22, 2010 – Key provisions of the Affordable Care Act that will directly benefit cancer patients, survivors and their loved ones are set to take effect tomorrow, six months after the landmark law was signed.
Starting Sept. 23, health plans will be banned from setting lifetime dollar caps on coverage, and annual dollar limits on coverage will be tightly restricted to ensure that people with cancer get access to needed care. In all new plans, preventive coverage will be guaranteed and out-of-pocket costs will be eliminated for proven preventive services, giving people access to lifesaving screenings for breast, cervical, and colorectal cancer.
Additionally, health plans will be barred from dropping people from coverage when they get sick. Dependent children will be able to remain on their parent’s insurance policy up to age 26. And new health plans will be prohibited from denying coverage to children up to age 19 with pre-existing conditions such as cancer.
“Making these critical provisions a reality will help to transform our old ‘sick care’ system into one that focuses on keeping people well,” said John R. Seffrin, PhD, chief executive officer of the American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network (ACS CAN), the advocacy affiliate of the American Cancer Society. “Strong implementation of this law will break down barriers to care that have forced too many families to delay or forgo lifesaving cancer screenings and treatments.”
Since the law was signed in late March, a number of important provisions have already taken effect, making health care more affordable for seniors and accessible for the previously uninsured. The Affordable Care Act has begun to close the Medicare Part D “doughnut hole” by providing seniors with a $250 rebate once they hit the coverage gap in Medicare’s prescription drug program. In July, a new high-risk plan, called the Pre-existing Condition Insurance Plan, launched in every state to provide immediate access to coverage for people who have been uninsured for six months or more and have cancer or another pre-existing condition.
“Improving access to quality, affordable health care is critical to winning the fight against cancer,” said Christopher W. Hansen, president of ACS CAN. “While this law is not perfect, families affected by cancer will see real benefits from these newest provisions and many more that will take effect in the months and years to come.”
As the leading voice of patients in the health care debate, ACS CAN is working to ensure that the Affordable Care Act is implemented as strongly as possible for cancer patients, survivors and caregivers. For more information, visit https://www.fightcancer.org/healthcare.
ACS CAN, the nonprofit, nonpartisan advocacy affiliate of the American Cancer Society, supports evidence-based policy and legislative solutions designed to eliminate cancer as a major health problem. ACS CAN works to encourage elected officials and candidates to make cancer a top national priority. ACS CAN gives ordinary people extraordinary power to fight cancer with the training and tools they need to make their voices heard. For more information, visit www.fightcancer.org.
FOR MORE INFORMATION, CONTACT:
Alissa Havens or Steven Weiss
American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network
Phone: (202) 661-5772 or (202) 661-5711
Email: [email protected] or [email protected]
