Coronavirus and Cancer Resources for Survivors
Cancer survivors have expressed concerns and questions about COVID-19, the coronavirus, and how they may be at higher risk due to their cancer history. Here are some resources about COVID-19 generally, and its impact for cancer survivors specifically. NCCS is seeking answers from public health experts on the coronavirus and its impact on cancer patients and survivors. Please leave a comment [...]
Health Care Roundup: Metastatic Breast Cancer Awareness; More on “Junk Insurance;” Reviewing Effects of California’s Surprise Billing Law; More
Ads Offering Bare-Bones Coverage are Everywhere – This Axios article highlights the growing trend of plans being advertised across the internet as “Trumpcare” plans. The problem? “Trumpcare doesn’t exist, and many of these advertised plans offer bare-bones coverage.” "It's impossible to expect consumers to discern between the good guys and the con artists," said Sabrina Corlette, a health insurance researcher at Georgetown University. "And [...]
Health Care Roundup: Cokie Roberts; Survivorship in the News; Junk Insurance Doesn’t Cover the Bills; Seeking Help and Encouragement; More
Tennessee became the first state in the country to release a plan proposing to block grant its Medicaid program. Currently, the federal government pays each state “a certain percentage of the cost of care for anyone eligible for health coverage.” If changed to a block grant program, the federal government would “instead pay a state a lump sum each year while freeing it from many of Medicaid’s rules, including who must be allowed into [...]
Remembering Cokie Roberts, a Tireless Advocate for Cancer Survivors
The National Coalition for Cancer Survivorship mourns the loss of Cokie Roberts, who died yesterday from complications of breast cancer. Mrs. Roberts was a generous supporter of NCCS both before and after her own seventeen-year cancer experience. In 1998, she co-hosted NCCS’s THE MARCH...Coming Together to Conquer Cancer, in honor of her ABC News colleague Sam Donaldson, a then three-year survivor of melanoma, and her sister, [...]
NCCS Survivorship Survey: Cancer Survivors Share Their Top Concerns
As part of its Elevating Survivorship initiative, NCCS fielded an online survey to understand cancer survivorship experiences and needs across a range of cancer patients. NCCS and our partner patient advocacy organizations promoted the survey to our constituents, and 1,380 cancer survivors responded. Some of the key findings include [...]
Health Care Roundup: What President Trump’s Health Care Plan Might Include; Recurrence Anxiety; Are There Too Many NCI Cancer Centers?; More
In August, we noted that President Trump and other members of his administration mentioned that they intend to unveil a substantial health care plan later this month. As we await the details of that plan, we wanted to share this Kaiser Health News article that examines what such a plan may, or may not, include. Congress returns to Washington next week, after the August recess. We will monitor and report on Congressional action on policy [...]
How the Patient Perspective Improved My Cancer Research and Changed My Career Path
The first time I heard the words “you have cancer,” I was sitting in the doctor’s office with my best friend Katie. We were both 28 years old. Katie had a lump removed from her breast the Monday before Thanksgiving and I was home in New Jersey a few days before the holiday to hang out with her post surgery. We were supposed to go to DSW that Wednesday morning when she got a call that her doctor wanted to see her that day. I collapsed on the floor [...]
Health Care Roundup: Medicare Payments for CAR-T; Cancer Screenings in Older Adults; Cancer and At-Home DNA Tests; End of Life Care; More
CAR-T therapies, a cutting-edge type of immunotherapy, are seen by many as the next generation for cancer treatments. Of course, they are expensive and complicated to administer. The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) recently announced long-awaited policies regarding payment for these treatments. CMS stated, “Medicare will pay for CAR-T therapies so long as they’re administered in health care facilities that follow the [...]
NCCS Announces 2019 Stovall Award Honorees, Dr. Harmar Brereton and Dana Dornsife
(NCCS) is pleased to announce that the 2019 winners of the Ellen L. Stovall Award for Innovation in Patient-Centered Cancer Care are Harmar Brereton, MD, founder of the Northeast Regional Cancer Institute, and Dana Dornsife, founder and board chair of the Lazarex Cancer Foundation. Now in its fourth year, the cancer community’s embrace of the award named after longtime NCCS CEO Ellen Stovall continues to be a testament to her lasting [...]
Health Care Roundup: Cancer Care Planning Bill Introduced; Drug Pricing Measures Advance; Rural Hospitals Struggling in States that Did Not Expand Medicaid; More
On July 23, the Cancer Care Planning and Communications Act (CCPCA), H.R. 3835, was reintroduced in the House of Representatives. The bill is sponsored by Rep. Mark DeSaulnier (D-CA) and Rep. Buddy Carter (R-GA), co-chairs of the Congressional Cancer Survivors Caucus. The CCPCA is NCCS’ top legislative priority as it would increase access to comprehensive cancer care planning for millions of Medicare beneficiaries. If implemented in Medicare [...]
NCCS Applauds Introduction by Reps. DeSaulnier and Carter of Bipartisan “Cancer Care Planning and Communications Act”
Washington, D.C. – Today, Rep. Mark DeSaulnier (D-CA) and Rep. Buddy Carter (R-GA), co-chairs of the Congressional Cancer Survivors Caucus, introduced H.R. 3835, the Cancer Care Planning and Communications Act (CCPCA). A legislative priority of the National Coalition for Cancer Survivorship (NCCS), the bill would create a Medicare service to reimburse providers for time and resources used to create cancer care plans for Medicare beneficiaries. [...]