Time is running out to ensure care for breast cancer patients during this Congress, says National Breast Cancer Coalition

WASHINGTON, Sept. 11, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Along with more than 100 other organizations, Breast Cancer Over Time joins the National Breast Cancer Coalition (NBCC) in urging  Congress to pass the Metastatic Breast Cancer Access to Care Act (H.R. 549, S. 663; MBCACA) now and give metastatic breast cancer patients immediate access to the benefits they paid for and deserve.

"Time is running out to pass the MBCACA this Congress," said NBCC President Fran Visco. "As we get closer to 290 cosponsors in the House of Representatives, it is clear this bill has garnered the bipartisan momentum and support it needs to pass. What is Congress waiting for?"

This year, an estimated 42,250 women and 530 men in the US will die of breast cancer. Almost all these deaths—90 percent—are because of metastatic disease: cancer that has spread from the breast to the bones, lungs, or other parts of the body. There is no cure. The life expectancy of those diagnosed with metastatic disease is, on average, 3 years.

Those with metastatic breast cancer are entitled to Medicare coverage and Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI). But current policies require them to wait to receive these benefits—5 months for SSDI and 24 months for Medicare—time they do not have.

["My life is ending. I don't have two years." Hear from those affected by the waiting periods the MBCACA would waive.]

The MBCACA would waive these lengthy and arbitrary waiting periods and ensure these people get the benefits they earned. Waiving waiting periods would help protect metastatic patients and their families from the significant financial, physical, and emotional distress many experience, from threats of eviction to delayed diagnosis and treatment.

With 257 cosponsors in the House and 29 in the Senate to date, the bill has garnered more bipartisan support than 99 percent of bills introduced during this Congress. The MBCACA was recently endorsed by the bipartisan Problem Solvers Caucus, with lead cosponsor Representative Andrew Garbarino (R-NY-02) touting its potential to "relieve the potential financial burden on those with the disease and allow them to focus on what's important: fighting the cancer."

"The MBCACA is common-sense legislation with broad bipartisan support," said Visco. "Metastatic breast cancer patients have no time to waste. Why must they continue to wait for Congress to act?"

To join this effort to pass the MBCACA this year:

• Use NBCC's Action Center to contact your representative. The Action Center will guide you in crafting a message to urge them to sign on if they haven't cosponsored or thank them for their support and ask them to help get the bill across the finish line this year.
• Get inspired by the personal stories of those who have been affected by waiting periods for Social Security Disability Insurance and Medicare.
• Read NBCC's advocates' powerful letters to their local media outlets to publicly push their elected officials to support the MBCACA.
• Spread the word about the MBCACA and NBCC's "Get to 290" effort by sharing this post on social media. Follow NBCC on X, Facebook, LinkedIn, and Instagram for more.

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SOURCE Breast Cancer Over Time