CT Challenge Statement on Health Care Legislation
March 23, 2010
12 million American cancer survivors will benefit from the new health care legislation. We want to be clear that the Connecticut Challenge’s first and only commitment is to cancer survivors.
Politics aside, the CT Challenge is pleased with many of the provisions in the bill, which will benefit cancer survivors during all phases of survivorship.
Is this new piece of legislation perfect? No.
Does it provide protections and security for cancer survivors? Yes it does.
Effective immediately, insurers can no longer drop coverage on individuals who become ill while covered.
Children who have been diagnosed with cancer can stay on their parent’s insurance plan until the age of 26, and no longer face the fear of being uninsurable at the age of 21.
The bill caps annual out-of-pocket costs at $6,200 for individuals and $12,400 for families and eliminates annual and lifetime limits. Cancer survivors know that the cost of treatment can quickly max out coverage, forcing many into bankruptcy.
And in 2014, a preexisting cancer diagnosis will no longer be a basis for denial of coverage.
The CT Challenge is frankly uninterested in the politics. We care about our constituency – survivors – and for survivors, today is a new day in health care.
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