Metastatic Breast Cancer Access to Care Act
Congress Proposes Ending Waiting Periods for Disability and Medicare for Metastatic Breast Cancer Patients
Stalled
No legislative action in over 90 days.
↔Companion bill: Senate Bill Would End Medicare, Disability Waiting Periods for Metastatic Breast Cancer PatientsLegislative Progress
Key Points
- This bill would remove the mandatory waiting periods for people diagnosed with metastatic breast cancer to receive federal help. Currently, most people with disabilities must wait five months for monthly cash benefits and two years for Medicare health insurance coverage.
- Under this plan, patients with this advanced stage of cancer would get their disability payments and Medicare coverage immediately after they are approved. This ensures they do not lose precious time while dealing with a terminal illness that requires urgent care.
- The goal is to reduce the financial and medical stress on families. Because metastatic breast cancer has spread to other parts of the body and is life-threatening, supporters argue that patients cannot afford to wait months or years for the support they need.
- This change would treat metastatic breast cancer the same way the government currently treats Lou Gehrig’s disease. If the bill becomes law, it would apply to all new applications for disability benefits filed after the law is signed.
Impact Analysis
Personal Impact
Programs
This bill amends the Social Security Act to add metastatic breast cancer to the same special category as ALS (Lou Gehrig's disease), which already has its waiting periods waived. This is a permanent structural change to how Social Security handles disability claims for this specific diagnosis. It would apply to all new SSDI applications filed after the law takes effect, giving metastatic breast cancer patients the same fast-track treatment that ALS patients currently receive.
Disabilities
Milestones
Referred to the House Committee on Ways and Means.
Introduced in House
The bill was officially filed and given a number. It now enters the legislative queue.
Votes
No votes have been recorded for this legislation yet.
Related News
2 articles
Advocates say a New York congresswoman is blocking care for people with incurable breast cancer
The Metastatic Breast Cancer Access to Care Act would waive the five-month waiting period for SSDI and the 24-month delay for Medicare. Advocates argue patients cannot afford to wait that long for a disease with an average survival of two to four years.
The government must act now to improve the lives of people with terminal breast cancer
In March, the Metastatic Breast Cancer Access to Care Act was re-introduced to both the U.S. House and Senate. This legislation would waive the 5-month and 24-month waiting periods for eligible people with stage IV breast cancer to access Social Security Disability Insurance and Medicare.
Source Information
Document Type
Congressional Bill
Official Title
Metastatic Breast Cancer Access to Care Act
Data Sources
Sponsor
Cosponsors
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