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
12-15-11 Affordable Care Act Update
December 16, 2011
Federal Update
Prevention and Public Health Fund Lobby Day
Today, more than 40 leading groups from the public health community, including ACS CAN, are on Capitol Hill participating in more than 70 meetings with members of Congress to remind them of the importance of the Prevention and Public Health Fund. The Prevention and Public Health Fund was established under the Affordable Care Act and set an unprecedented investment to promote a healthy nation. This year, the Prevention Fund allocated $1 billion to communities in every state, and over the course of its first 10 years (FY 2010-2019), a total of $15 billion in proven, effective ways to keep Americans healthier. However, the fund has been threatened numerous times by the White House and Congress who are looking to reduce or even eliminate funds. Read more about today's event on the Cancer CANdor blog and see the invitation promoting the lobby day.
More than 2.5 Million Young Adults Gain Access to Health Care
The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) announced yesterday that more than 2.5 million young adults under the age 26 have been able to stay on their parents' health insurance plans due to a provision in the Affordable Care Act. This number was larger than expected and represented an increase in the amount of insured young adults from 64 percent in September 2010, when the provision took effect, to 73 percent in June 2011. Read the coverage in The Hill for more.
Litigation
Late last week, the U.S. Supreme Court set its briefing schedule for oral arguments on the Affordable Care Act. As you may remember, numerous legal challenges have been filed in courts across the nation, with cases being accepted by the high court earlier this month. The briefing schedule outlines the deadlines by which each of the parties involved in the case and friends of the court (or "amici") will have to file their briefs. ACS and ACS CAN, along with our preventative health partners, the American Heart Association and the American Diabetes Association, filed as amici in the Circuit Courts of Appeals to help defend the law. We plan to file a similar brief at the US Supreme Court, helping to educate the Court about the critical link between health insurance status and health outcomes. Our brief will be due on January 13.
As always, thank you for all you do every day to support laws and policies that help cancer patients and their families.
Chris Hansen | President of ACS CAN
ACS Cancer Action Network | American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network, Inc.