AUGUSTA – December 31, 2024 - As Maine lawmakers welcome the New Year and begin the 2025 legislative session, the American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network (ACS CAN) calls on lawmakers to prioritize public health and focus on a multipronged approach to cancer prevention and cancer treatment: increasing the tax on cigarettes by $2 per pack with a parallel tax on all other tobacco products and passing legislation expanding access to biomarker testing for Mainers.
“With a new year and new legislative session upon us, Mainers – citizens and lawmakers alike – are thinking about how they can ensure good health for 2025. Fortunately, we have some of the answers,” said Julia MacDonald, director of government relations for ACS CAN in Maine.
“Increasing tobacco taxes is a proven way to help those who use tobacco quit and prevent youth from picking up the deadly addiction in the first place. What better way to mark the start of a new year than resolving to take action towards healthier kids, healthier air, and healthier communities across our state?” she continued.
ACS CAN is also renewing efforts to increase access to biomarker testing - an increasingly important part of cancer care. In the case of a cancer diagnosis, biomarker testing allows doctors to precisely target a specific cancer so some patients may not have to undergo more generalized treatments like chemo and radiation that may not work for their individual cancer. To date, 20 states have passed similar legislation to ensure coverage of biomarker testing.
“Biomarker testing can help doctors determine the most effective treatment for individual patients. By ensuring insurance coverage of biomarker testing for more Mainers – regardless of their demographics – we can not only make treatment easier for the individual patients, but also advance statewide health equity in 2025,” said MacDonald.
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About ACS CAN
The American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network (ACS CAN) advocates for evidence-based public policies to reduce the cancer burden for everyone. We engage our volunteers across the country to make their voices heard by policymakers at every level of government. We believe everyone should have a fair and just opportunity to prevent, detect, treat, and survive cancer. Since 2001, as the American Cancer Society’s nonprofit, nonpartisan advocacy affiliate, ACS CAN has successfully
