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Energy and Commerce Committee Vote A Critical Step Forward in Congressional Effort to Enact Meaningful Health Care Reform
July 31, 2009
WASHINGTON, D.C. -- July 31, 2009 -- Cancer patients, survivors and their loved ones are encouraged by the House Energy and Commerce Committee vote today to approve health care reform legislation, a move that ensures that progress toward comprehensive reform will continue. The bill will be voted on by the full House after the August recess.
The bill would go a long way to help meet the needs of families touched by cancer by making it easier to access preventive services, guaranteeing that no one will be denied coverage because of health status or pre-existing conditions and promoting patient-centered care that supports quality of life for patients.
“The House bill is a dramatic improvement over the current health care system for cancer patients and survivors as it guarantees the issuance of health coverage, prohibits the denial of care because of pre-existing conditions and invests in prevention,” said John R. Seffrin, Ph.D., chief executive of the American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network (ACS CAN). “Today’s vote represents a major step forward, and ACS CAN will be working with lawmakers to strengthen the legislation for cancer patients and their families.”
ACS CAN remains concerned that coverage provided in the House bill, as well as the corresponding Senate measures, may not be affordable for some families. ACS CAN also has questions about the adequacy of benefits for people with cancer or other life-threatening chronic conditions. ACS CAN is urging Congress to make quality insurance affordable to low- and middle-income Americans and will be working with lawmakers from both parties to achieve that goal as the legislative process moves forward.
A recent poll conducted for ACS CAN found that one in four families affected by cancer has had to put off or delay care in the last year because of cost.
“Cancer patients with insurance across the country are digging deep into their savings and facing financial ruin to pay for their treatment and care,” said Daniel E. Smith, president of ACS CAN. “Health care reform legislation must ensure that people with life-threatening diseases such as cancer can get the care they need at a cost they can afford.”
The House bill would significantly elevate the importance of disease prevention by requiring a national strategy on prevention, centralizing government efforts to improve prevention and wellness, minimizing or eliminating patient cost sharing for preventive services and establishing a dedicated source of government funding for evidence-based prevention programs.
The bill includes strong insurance market reform, guaranteeing access to health insurance and eliminating the use of health status in the enrollment process and providing subsidies to help low- and middle-income families buy insurance. The bill sets annual and lifetime out-of-pocket caps for individuals and families, though no caps apply to out-of-network care that cancer patients frequently require.
The House bill also provides for the creation of an independent body that would rely on evidence based research to determine a standard for minimum adequate coverage. ACS CAN supports the proposed approaches for developing consensus quality care measures together with an accountable and transparent payment system that will drive delivery of higher-quality, more cost effective care.
A recent study by ACS CAN and the Georgetown Health Policy Institute found that the plan chosen by most federal employees and members of Congress under the Federal Employee Health Benefits Program represents a good starting point for minimum coverage under health care reform and the federal program would serve as a good reference for the independent body to consider.
Cancer patients also stand to benefit from important Medicare provisions included in the bill. Eliminating deductibles for colorectal screening tests will remove the financial barrier that prevents too many from delaying or forgoing the lifesaving test. The bill’s efforts to address the prescription coverage “donut hole” will help cancer patients who too often are faced with tough choices about whether to pay for high cost cancer drugs or other basic necessities. ACS CAN encourages lawmakers to consider a shorter timeframe to reduce the “donut hole” than is currently proposed in the legislation.
Finally, cancer patients and survivors could greatly benefit from provisions of the legislation that recognize the need to support patient quality of life, including pain and symptom management, comprehensive care planning, and other aspects of palliative care.
ACS CAN is the leading voice of patients in the health care reform debate, having worked with a broad cross-section of stakeholders for the past several years to build momentum for reform nationwide. Since June, ACS CAN has mobilized more than 13,000 volunteers to contact their Members of Congress to urge them to fix the system in a way that will work for cancer patients. A system fix that works for families affected by cancer can work for virtually anyone who needs to access care.
ACS CAN, the nonprofit, nonpartisan advocacy affiliate of the American Cancer Society, supports evidence-based policy and legislative solutions designed to eliminate cancer as a major health problem. ACS CAN works to encourage elected officials and candidates to make cancer a top national priority. ACS CAN gives ordinary people extraordinary power to fight cancer with the training and tools they need to make their voices heard. For more information, visit www.acscan.org.
FOR MORE INFORMATION, CONTACT:
Steven Weiss
Phone: (202) 661-5711
Email: [email protected]
Alissa Havens
Phone: (202) 661-5772
Email: [email protected]
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