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While roughly 83% of adults in the United States will visit a health care provider in the next year, an estimated
News
4-14-11 Affordable Care Act Update
April 18, 2011
Capitol Hill Update
FY 2011 Continuing Resolution
House and Senate leaders late last week announced an agreement on a final 2011 fiscal year (FY 2011) Continuing Resolution (CR) that will fund the government through the end of September. The House of Representatives passed the CR this afternoon by a bi-partisan vote of 260-167. The Senate will vote later this evening, and the President has stated that he will sign the bill into law.
The bill cuts discretionary spending for FY 2011 by $38 billion under FY 2010 levels. It sets the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention budget at $5.6 billion, a cut of $740 million (nearly 12 percent) below FY10. The National Institutes of Health budget will be just under $30.7 billion, a cut of $320 million (1 percent) below FY10. The National Cancer Institute budget will be $5.06 billion, a cut of $43 million.
Funding for implementation of the Affordable Care Act was mostly untouched; however the CR does cut $2.2 billion of the $6 billion that was authorized for the Consumer Operated and Oriented Plan (CO-OP). CO-OP was created as a public option alternative that creates nonprofit, member-run health insurance companies in all 50 states and District of Columbia to offer qualified health plans. The CR also repeals the Employee Free Choice Vouchers Program, which was created to allow workers to opt out of their employer offered insurance if it was unaffordable and use the money to buy health insurance coverage through the exchanges.
Prevention and Public Health Fund
On Wednesday the House passed HR 1217, a bill to repeal the Prevention and Public Health Fund, by a 236-183 vote. Funding resources from the Prevention and Public Health Fund currently go to every state for improving access to lifesaving cancer screenings, tobacco cessation and community-based health programs dedicated to reversing the increasing problem of obesity. ACS CAN strongly opposes repeal of the fund. At this time, it is unclear whether the Senate will take up the measure. Read the ACS CAN press release and the Associated Press story.
Prevention Advisory Group
Dr. John Seffrin participated in the first meeting of the Advisory Group on Prevention, Health Promotion, and Integrative and Public Health this week. The President established the advisory group as required by the Affordable Care Act to provide policy and program recommendations, and to advise the National Prevention, Health Promotion and Public Health Council (National Prevention Council) on chronic disease prevention and management, integrative health care practices and health promotion. The advisory group will provide guidance on the creation of the first-ever national strategy to build a healthier population. Read the draft framework for the national strategy.
Litigation Update
The Department of Justice filed its reply seeking to defend the law in the Virginia case in the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals, while the American Cancer Society and ACS CAN again partnered with the American Diabetes Association and the American Heart Association to file an amicus brief in the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals, which is scheduled to hear oral arguments in the multi-state lawsuit brought in Florida. In that case, a federal judge struck down the entire law, then stayed his judgment pending appeal.
Read our latest filing:
New Poll Shows Many Americans Grade Health Care System Below Average
More than half of Americans (55 percent) grade overall health care quality with a C or D on a typical report card scale, according to a poll released this week by Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. Moreover, 11 percent say the system deserves a failing grade of F. While these marks for the system are low, the same poll showed Americans tend to think more highly of the individual care they receive. The survey was released at the same time as the Department of Health and Human Services launched its new patient safety initiative dedicated to improving patient safety and reducing health care costs.
As always, thank you for all you do every day to support laws and policies that help cancer patients and their families.
Christopher W. Hansen
President
American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network (ACS CAN)