Impacting Colorectal Cancer Through Advocacy
At the Federal level, we advocate for policies that create Federally-funded screening programs for those that lack insurance, mandate private insurance coverage of screening, and reduce out-of-pocket expenses associated with screening for Medicare beneficiaries. We also support a strong commitment to funding for cancer and biomedical research at the National Cancer Institute (NCI) and National Institutes of Health (NIH)
We support the following Federal legislation which, if enacted, will improve access to colorectal cancer screening:
The Prevent Cancer Foundation is proud to support the Cover Your Butt Campaign, with C3: Colorectal Cancer Coalition and other members of the cancer community, to advance access to coverage for colorectal cancer screening. The Cover Your Butt campaign has been created to remind Congress that it is urgent to ensure that men and women who want to be screened have the opportunity and includes all three bills mentioned above.
The Prevent Cancer Foundation has advocated for an increase in funding at the NIH that will allow for continued progress in basic and translational research, and the development of new screening technologies that will move us further toward prevention of colorectal cancer. In FY 2008, the Prevent Cancer Foundation recommended appropriations of $30.9 billion for the National Institutes of Health and support for the National Cancer Institute Professional Judgment budget of $5.8 billion, but at a minimum, provide $5.1 billion.
At the state level, the Prevent Cancer Foundation supports efforts to mandate private insurance coverage of colorectal cancer screening. Private insurers are not Federally mandated to cover the cost of colorectal cancer screening. In the absence of a Federal mandate, nearly half of all states in the United States have taken action to ensure that private insurers operating within their states do provide coverage. The Prevent Cancer Foundation has partnered with other leaders in colorectal cancer to develop a state level report card on state screening programs. We also support state efforts to fund programs that improve access to and capacity for screening, particularly for low-income and underserved populations, and educate the population about the effectiveness of screening.
Join the Prevent Cancer Foundation's Advocacy Action Center to tell Congress you care about the future of cancer prevention. You'll get updates on important cancer legislation and action alerts on what and how to communicate with your elected officials.