ACR Supports Medicaid Coverage of Lung Cancer Screening

The long ACR®-supported Increasing Access to Lung Cancer Screening Act was introduced in the U.S. House of Representatives Nov. 20, by Reps. Brian Fitzpatrick (R-PA) and Kathy Castor (D-FL).  
This bill would require all state Medicaid programs to cover lung cancer screening for eligible enrollees without cost-sharing, expand coverage for tobacco cessation, and prohibit payers from subjecting annual lung cancer screening to prior authorization. 

Lung cancer kills more people than breast, colon and prostate cancers combined. Annual screening of those at high risk for lung cancer with low-dose CT Scans (LDCT) was proven by multiple renowned studies published in the New England Journal of Medicine and elsewhere to significantly reduce lung cancer deaths. ,   

Updated federal guidelines nearly doubled the number of Americans eligible for lung cancer screening. Private insurance and Medicare cover these yearly screenings for those who meet age and smoking-history requirements. Yet, to date less than 18.2% of those eligible are screened. Wider screening could save 30,000–60,000 lives in the U.S. each year.

Minorities have increased risk to lung cancer:

• Black men and women are more likely to get and die from lung cancer than other races
  
• Black men are most likely to die from lung cancer
  
• Latinos are more likely to be diagnosed with advanced lung cancer - but less likely to get treatment, according to the American Lung Association 

Wider screening can help address these disparities and save more lives from the nation’s leading cancer killer. 

ACR continues to monitor and provide updates on the bill’s progress. For more information or if you have questions, contact Ashley Walton, ACR Director of Government Affairs.