Millions of Americans currently enrolled in Medicaid are at risk of losing their health coverage and access to the care they need to get and stay healthy. During the COVID-19 pandemic, Congress put in place protections to ensure that Medicaid enrollees were able to keep their health coverage with no disruptions without needing to re-enroll. A December 2022 spending bill passed by Congress has ended these protections as of April 1st, 2023. States have begun reviewing the eligibility of every person enrolled in Medicaid, and dropping coverage for those who no longer qualify or do not provide updated information.
Access to affordable coverage like Medicaid significantly improves chances of diagnosing, treating, and surviving cancer. Interruptions in insurance, like those that will result from the unwinding of continuous coverage, can have catastrophic effects on cancer patients who cannot delay treatment. ACS CAN is dedicated to improving the lives of people with cancer and their families through advocacy, research, and patient support, to ensure everyone has an opportunity to prevent, detect, treat, and survive cancer.