Empowering patient voices through voter registration
While roughly 83% of adults in the United States will visit a health care provider in the next year, an estimated
News
1-27-11 Affordable Care Act Update
February 8, 2011
1/27/11 Below is this week’s update on the Affordable Care Act. As always, thank you for all you do every day to support laws and policies that help cancer patients and their families
Dr. Seffrin Named to New to National Prevention Advisory Group
The White House has announced its intention to appoint John R. Seffrin, Ph.D., chief executive officer of the American Cancer Society and its advocacy affiliate, the American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network (ACS CAN), to the advisory group to the newly created National Prevention, Health Promotion and Public Health Council.
The council, which was created by the Affordable Care Act, is working to integrate the prevention efforts of numerous federal government agencies and coordinate prevention and wellness services nationwide. It was formed in June 2010 and is composed of six federal department secretaries and other government officials. The new Advisory Group on Prevention, Health Promotion, and Integrative and Public Health is empowered by the new law to advise the council on chronic disease prevention, health promotion and the creation of a first-ever national prevention strategy. Read the ACS CAN press release.
Amicus Brief
A detailed message was sent last Friday by Dr. Seffrin to staff nationwide regarding the amicus brief defending patient protections in the Affordable Care Act that the American Cancer Society and ACS CAN filed together with the American Diabetes Association and American Heart Association. The joint effort makes a powerful statement to the court. A question-and-answer document about the amicus brief, a joint media statement on the filing, and a copy of the brief are available in the Access to Care community on the Link. Read the joint statement.
New Kaiser Poll
A new poll released this week by the Kaiser Family Foundation finds that the Americans remain split in their assessment of the Affordable Care Act, but that a clear majority oppose efforts to defund the law. The proportion of Americans with unfavorable views of the law rose to 50 percent in January from 41 percent in December, while the share of the public with favorable views held steady at 41 percent. However, nearly two-thirds (62 percent) of respondents disapprove of efforts in Congress to deny the funding needed to implement the law. Interestingly, independent voters hold unfavorable views of the law (57 percent) while at the same time disapproving of efforts to defund it (62 percent).
The poll found that several provisions of the law are popular, including those that close the coverage gap in the Medicare prescription drug benefit (85 percent approval), those providing for subsidies to help low-and middle-income Americans purchase health insurance (79 percent approval), and those expanding Medicaid eligibility (67 percent approval). One of the least popular provisions, with 76 percent opposition, is the requirement that all Americans buy insurance. However, people's opinions on the individual responsibility requirement are influenced by arguments for or against it. Unfavorable views fell to 47 percent when respondents were told that without the requirement, insurance companies would be allowed to continue denying coverage to people who are sick. At the same time, opposition rose to 85 percent when respondents were informed that the requirement could compel people to buy health insurance they find too expensive or do not want.
More details about the poll are available on the Kaiser Family Foundation website.
Medicare
Relief for seniors caught in the Medicare prescription drug “doughnut hole” was one of the first benefits of the Affordable Care Act to take effect. Last Friday, Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius announced that 3 million beneficiaries have now been sent a one-time, tax-free $250 rebate check. The Hill newspaper reported prior to the repeal vote that House Majority Leader Eric Cantor (R-VA) said that seniors who have received the rebate would not have to pay it back if the Affordable Care Act is repealed.
Christopher W. Hansen
President
American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network (ACS CAN)