Maryland and DC Making Progress on Cancer-FIghting Public Policies

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Ray Carson

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Maryland and DC Making Progress on Cancer-Fighting Public Policies

Maryland & DC Lawmakers Have Opportunities to Save Lives and Money Through Improving Access to Affordable Health Coverage, Tobacco Control and Quality of Life Measures

WASHINGTON, DC – August 3, 2017 – Maryland and the District of Columbia are making progress when it comes to supporting policies and passing legislation to prevent and reduce suffering and death from cancer. According to the latest edition of How Do You Measure Up?: A Progress Report on State Legislative Activity to Reduce Cancer Incidence and Mortality,  Maryland measured up to policy recommendations in four of the nine issue areas ranked while the District of Columbia measured up in five categories. The report was released today by the American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network (ACS CAN).

“This 15^th edition of the report shows just how far we’ve come in the last decade and a half passing policies proven to reduce suffering and death from cancer. But now is certainly not the time to rest on our laurels,” Bonita Pennino, government relations director for ACS CAN in Maryland and the District of Columbia. “This year alone in Maryland and DC, 34,890 people will be diagnosed with cancer. We owe it to them and everyone at risk of developing the disease, to do what we know works to prevent cancer and improve access to screenings and treatment. This report shows lawmakers a legislative path forward to improve cancer prevention efforts, curb tobacco use, prioritize the quality of life for patients and their families and increase access to critical health coverage.”

How Do You Measure Up? rates states in nine specific areas of public policy that can help fight cancer, including smoke-free laws, cigarette tax levels, funding for tobacco prevention and cessation programs and cessation coverage under Medicaid, funding for cancer screening programs and restricting indoor tanning devices for minors. The report also looks at whether a state has passed policies proven to increase patient quality of life and offers a well-balanced approach to pain medications.

Additionally, the report offers a blueprint for how Maryland and the District of Columbia can work within the current federal health care law on approaches to improving access to affordable and adequate health coverage for cancer patients and their families. It outlines opportunities to increase provider network adequacy, protect patients from surprise costs and increase access to care through Medicaid—and details the negative financial and human impact if they fail to take action in these areas. For example, currently 31 states have increased access to health coverage through their state’s Medicaid program, as allowed through current law. Maryland and DC were leaders in this area –broadening access to Medicaid that has resulted in more than 310,230 residents gaining access to adequate and affordable health care coverage.

Passing and implementing the policy recommendations in the report would not only save lives in Maryland and DC, but also save millions in long-term health care costs and in some cases would even generate additional, much-needed revenue.

A color-coded system classifies how well a state is doing in each issue. Green shows that a state has adopted evidence-based policies and best practices; yellow indicates moderate movement toward the benchmark and red shows where states are falling short.