Lance bill seeks to make oral chemotherapy drugs more affordable

Bipartisan legislation introduced by U.S. Rep. Leonard Lance (R-NJ) on Wednesday would require insurance companies to provide the same coverage for oral anticancer medications as they do for traditional chemotherapy.

The Cancer Drug Parity Act, H.R. 1409, aims to make oral chemotherapy, which has become more common for patients with varying types of cancer, more accessible by lowering their out-of-pocket costs.

“Insurance coverage for cancer treatments must keep up with innovation,” Lance, a member of the House Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Health, said. “Many patients are now using promising oral treatments but are forced to pay astronomical out-of-pocket costs or forgo treatment altogether. We have to fix this disparity in coverage so cancer patients are making health care decisions based on the best information, not which treatment fits into outdated guidelines.”

Lance is working to build a bipartisan consensus behind ideas that will lower health care costs. He has teamed up with U.S. Rep. Brian Higgins (D-NY), a member of the Ways and Means Health Subcommittee, on the bill.

With his role in passing the 21st Century Cures Act and his Breast Cancer Patient Education Act being implemented last year, Lance has a record of tackling cancer-related issues in Congress.

“We want to thank Congressman Lance for introducing this vital legislation on oral parity, which we’ve already passed in the state of New Jersey,” Tina Jacobs, the director of Community Health of Komen North Jersey, said. “We’ve seen the impact of this bill in our community, including especially huge benefits for women with metastatic breast cancer, which is why Komen and our affiliate are proud to support this bill.”

Ellen Willmott, the interim CEO of the Susan G. Komen Foundation, said every breast cancer patient should have access to the right treatments without undue economic or regulatory burdens.

“Oral chemotherapy allows patients to be with families or productive on their jobs, rather than spending hours at a clinic taking traditional chemotherapy, and should be available at no additional cost,” Willmott said.