WASHINGTON – October 29, 2009 – “The health reform bill unveiled by House leaders today would dramatically improve the health care system for people with cancer and other life-threatening chronic diseases. With House debate set to begin next week and debate on the Senate bill to follow in the coming weeks, Congress continues to make critical progress toward enacting meaningful reform.
“Both the House and Senate bills would improve health care for patients and their families by refocusing the system to emphasize prevention, ending the practice of denying coverage because of pre-existing conditions, limiting the cost burden on families by providing care that costs less and covers more, and emphasizing patients’ quality of life.
“No one should have to fight for their life and their life savings at the same time. Families touched by cancer are telling Congress to put patients before politics and transform the ‘sick-care’ system this year.
“ACS CAN volunteers have made more than 70,000 calls to their legislators since June, with nearly 2,000 calls a day expected into lawmaker offices in coming weeks. In addition, ACS CAN volunteers across the country continue to hold rallies, vigils and other events to let their Members of Congress know how important health care reform is to cancer patients, survivors and their loved ones.
“ACS CAN also continues to highlight stories of people like Dan Brodrick of Gainsboro, Tenn., who lost his wife to cancer after she was denied insurance coverage because of a pre-existing condition. The Brodrick's story is the focus of an ongoing television, print and on-line advertising campaign that can be viewed at https://www.fightcancer.org.”
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.fightcancer.org.
FOR MORE INFORMATION, CONTACT:
Alissa Havens
Phone: (202) 661-5772
Email: [email protected]
Steve Weiss
Phone: (202) 661-5711
Email: [email protected]