Access to Health Care

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Every American deserves access to quality, affordable health care. From cancer screenings like mammograms and colonoscopies to the latest breakthroughs in treatment, everyone should have access to the care that could prevent cancer and save their life.  In addition, ensuring that low-income working families have access to affordable health insurance is proven to reduce overall health care costs. 

We are working in every state and in Congress to expand health care options and protect existing laws that help patients get true access to the care they need. 

People without health insurance are more likely to be diagnosed with cancer at a late stage, when the disease is harder to treat, more costly and more difficult to survive.

Latest Updates

May 18, 2026
Minnesota

ST. PAUL, Minn. – “As lawmakers close the 2026 legislative session, their record on improving cancer policy is decidedly mixed for the nearly 40,000 Minnesotans who will be diagnosed with the disease this year. “The legislature took some steps to minimize the harms to Minnesotans on Medical Assistance

May 18, 2026

Late Friday, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) released a final rule on the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act HHS Notice of Benefit and Payment Parameters (NBPP) for plan year 2027. In March, the American Cancer Society Cancer

May 14, 2026
Montana

HELENA, Mont. – Montana will implement work requirements on its Medicaid expansion population on July 1, becoming just the second state to proceed ahead of the federal mandate of January 2027, per HR 1. The access to care that about 80,000 Montanans get through Montana Medicaid has led to better

May 14, 2026
Alaska

JUNEAU, Alaska -- Access to quality, affordable health care is crucial for all Alaskans to lead healthy and happy lives and Senate Bill 83 will be a step in assuring that access, especially for residents in the most rural parts of the state, putting telehealth rate fairness into law. Alaska

Access to Health Care Resources

The American Cancer Society (ACS) and the American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network (ACS CAN) are pleased to provide comments to the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP). Our comments reflect our commitment to cancer prevention and control and focus on ensuring that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) immunization schedules are grounded in strong scientific evidence, and provide clear, actionable information to healthcare professionals, parents, and payers.

For the American Cancer Society (ACS) and the American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network (ACS CAN), health equity means that everyone has a fair and just opportunity to prevent, detect, treat, and survive cancer – no matter how much money someone makes, the color of their skin, sexual orientat

ACS CAN supports fact-based vaccine policies that fight cancer through increased access and uptake of vaccines that prevent viruses that lead to cancer, treat cancer by boosting the immune system, and protect cancer patients and their families by maximizing community immunity.