Reducing Health Disparities

Volunteers at the Capitol

Cancer impacts everyone, but it doesn’t impact everyone equally. We are working to ensure everyone has a fair and just opportunity to prevent, find, treat, and survive cancer. No one should be disadvantaged in their fight against cancer because of how much money they make, the color of their skin, their sexual orientation, their gender identity, their disability status, or where they live.

From ensuring greater diversity among clinical trial participants to improving access to quality, affordable health care, we are asking lawmakers to reduce disparities in cancer care by advancing policies that break down existing barriers.

Black women are 40% more likely to die of breast cancer than white women overall

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Nearly 1 in 2 Patients with Medical Debt Feel “Trapped”, New Poll from Leading Healthcare Orgs Finds

October 30, 2023
National

A new national poll reveals that patients are counting on lawmakers to solve the medical debt crisis. U.S. adults say it is past time for federal and state policymakers to act.

Racial disparities in prostate cancer could be addressed with newly introduced legislation

October 4, 2023
National

Prostate cancer is the second most common type of cancer in American men. However, while cancer affects everyone, it does not affect everyone equally. Black men have a much higher incidence of prostate cancer compared to other men. In fact, one in six Black men will be diagnosed with

Hundreds of Cancer Patients, Survivors Travel to D.C. Urging Congress to Make Cancer a National Priority

September 18, 2023
National

As Congress works to determine 2024 priorities before the budget deadline at the end of the month, nearly 700 cancer patients, survivors and their loved ones from all 50 states, Washington, D.C., Guam and Puerto Rico, and nearly every congressional district, will be on Capitol Hill this week to make clear to members of Congress that cancer must be a national priority.

Bipartisan Legislation Aimed at Removing Cost Barriers to Prostate Cancer Screening Introduced in the Senate

September 14, 2023

Washington, D.C., September 14, 2023 – Bipartisan legislation that would eliminate financial barriers to prostate cancer screening was introduced in the U.S. Senate. Sponsored by Sens. Cory Booker (D-NJ) and John Boozman (R-AR), the Prostate-Specific Antigen Screening for High-risk Insured Men (PSA Screening for HIM) Act would waive cost-sharing requirements for men with the highest risk of prostate cancer, focusing on Black men and those with a family history of the disease.

Reducing Health Disparities Resources

Congress Should Reauthorize the National Breast and Cervical Cancer Early Detection Program

June 8, 2023

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) National Breast and Cervical Cancer Early Detection Program (NBCCEDP) is highly effective at detecting and treating breast and cervical cancer in low-income, uninsured, and underinsured women – who may otherwise not be screened. The American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network (ACS CAN) urges Congress to reauthorize this critical program by passing the Screening for Communities to Receive Early and Equitable Needed Services (SCREENS) for Cancer Act.

The National Breast & Cervical Cancer Early Detection Program

February 28, 2023

For 30 years, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s National Breast and Cervical Cancer Early Detection Program has decreased disparities in breast and cervical cancer deaths.

Survivor Views: Copay Assistance and Patient Navigation

July 18, 2022

Prescription drug costs are a significant burden on cancer patients and survivors, sometimes even leading patients to miss or delay taking prescribed medications. The latest Survivor Views survey explores the role copay assistance programs can play in reducing this burden, and also addresses patient navigation and digital therapeutics.