Federal Policy Alert
Please take action and urge your senators and representative to support the Metastatic Breast Cancer Access to Care Act (H.R. 549 / S. 663).
Update: 10/03/2024
Congress is on recess but advocates continue efforts to gain cosponsors for the Metastatic Breast Cancer Access to Care Act (MBCACA).
One of the highest legislative priorities of the WBCC and the National Breast Cancer Coalition (NBCC) this year is to enact the Metastatic Breast Cancer Access to Care Act (H.R. 549 / S. 663) to waive the 24 month waiting period for Medicare eligibility and the 5 month waiting period for Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) benefits for individuals with metastatic breast cancer who are already eligible to receive them.
During this arbitrary waiting period, individuals with metastatic breast cancer (MBC) face incredible hardships in supporting themselves and their families and receiving the appropriate medical care that they desperately need. The average life expectancy of an individual with MBC is three years. Too many individuals with this disease die waiting for their benefits.
The House and Senate are now on a lengthy recess but advocates across the country continue to make calls and arrange Zoom meetings and office visits in an effort to gain additional support for the MBCACA.
Following the September board meeting, NBCC’s board members were out in force on Capitol Hill working to shore up support from key leaders for the MBCACA. Additional cosponsors have been added recently and more have been added since the September Lobby Day.
Congress will reconvene after the November election, leaving us just weeks to get this bill passed before the end of the 118th Congress in January.
NBCC and WBCC will continue to build relationships with our members of Congress and will continue to stay in close contact with the cosponsors we currently have.
We need to gain the attention of our Wisconsin delegation and focus on those who are not yet cosponsors: Representatives Bryan Steil, Scott Fitzgerald and Tom Tiffany and Senator Ron Johnson.
We thank the following for their cosponsorship: Representatives Mark Pocan, Gwen Moore, Glen Grothman and Derrick Van Orden and Senator Tammy Baldwin.
Update: 2/17/2024
The Metastatic Breast Cancer Access to Care Act (H.R. 549 / S. 663) is bipartisan federal legislation that would waive the 24-month waiting period for Medicare eligibility and the 5-month waiting period for Social Security Disability Insurance benefits for individuals with metastatic breast cancer who qualify and are already eligible to receive them.
During this arbitrary waiting period, these individuals can face incredible hardships in supporting themselves and their families. The hardships they endure prevent them from receiving the appropriate medical care that they desperately need.
YOU can make a difference! Urge your representative and our senators to cosponsor the Metastatic Breast Cancer Access to Care Act. Visit the National Breast Cancer Coalition website for tools to take action. After entering your address, you will receive the information you need to send customized messages to your members of Congress asking that they support this important legislation. If you feel comfortable doing so, please consider sharing your story or that of a loved one.
Though your comments and stories maybe brief, they will send a powerful message as to the importance of the bill and why our members of Congress should become cosponsors. Even if you have previously made calls, written letters and made office visits, please keep up your advocacy efforts by reaching out AGAIN and AGAIN, urging them to sign on as cosponsors of the MBCACA. They need to hear from all of us! We have made great strides in pushing this legislation along and it currently has 224 cosponsors. But we need to push even harder to reach our goal of getting this bill passed by the end of the year.
Your advocacy efforts are greatly appreciated. THANK YOU!
Update: 12/31/2023
WBCC and National Breast Cancer Coalition (NBCC) advocates nationwide continue to build on the momentum of the 117th Congress. At this point, the number of cosponsors in the House in the first session of the 118th Congress is close to the total number of cosponsors in all of the 117th Congress. Advocates will continue to seek additional cosponsors in the House and Senate as we move into the second session of the 118th Congress.
WBCC advocates held meetings with Wisconsin members in the House in person and virtually in December and will meet in person again at the end of January in Washington DC.
Through efforts of NBCC and WBCC advocates and others across the country, the number of cosponsors for this bill has increased significantly, but we still have work to do.
We need your help. We need your voice, your letters and your passion to push this bill forward during this next session in Congress. The time is NOW.
We need contacts in the following districts:
District 1: Bryan Steil 202-225-3031
District 5: Scott Fitzgerald 202-225-5101
District 7: Thomas Tiffany 202-225-3365
District 8: Mike Gallagher 202-225-5665
If you live in anyone of these districts and are willing to serve as a contact for us or have questions, please email Kathleen Harris at kathleenharris2020@gmail.com. Please use “MBCACA Contact” in the subject line.
Update: 11/7/2023
One of WBCC’s and the National Breast Cancer Coalition’s (NBCC) highest legislative priorities this year is to enact the Metastatic Breast Cancer Access to Care Act (MBCACA) to waive the 24 month waiting period for Medicare eligibility and the 5 month waiting period for Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) benefits for individuals with metastatic breast cancer who are already eligible to receive them.
During this arbitrary waiting period, individuals with metastatic breast cancer face incredible hardships in supporting themselves and their families and receiving the appropriate medical care that they desperately need. The average life expectancy of an individual with metastatic breast cancer is 3 years. Too many individuals with this disease die waiting for their benefits.
Advocates from WBCC and the National Breast Cancer Coalition (NBCC) continue to build on the momentum of the 117th Congress when this bill received 240 cosponsors, more than 50 percent support in the House. Now we need your help to get the bill passed in the 118th Congress.
Read some of the stories of those affected by these waiting periods and then take action by calling your Senators and Representative and urging them to cosponsor the MBCACA.
Message
I urge Representative / Senator _______ to cosponsor the Metastatic Breast Cancer Access To Care Act H.R. 549 / S. 663. This legislation would waive the waiting periods for Medicare eligibility and Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) benefits for individuals with metastatic breast cancer who qualify and are already eligible to receive them.
How To Enhance the Impact of Your Call:
- If you are a constituent, please include that in your message.
- Ask family members and friends to join you in making calls as well. One or two extra calls can make a big difference. Every call counts!
- A personal message: If you or a loved one is living with metastatic breast cancer, feel free to mention it if you feel comfortable doing so.
Please CALL TODAY and throughout the next two weeks if your time permits. We need to follow up on the progress we have already made. We would like to get as many cosponsors as we can before the end of this congressional session.
Contact Information
Senators:
Tammy Baldwin: 202-224-5653
Ron Johnson: 202-224-5323
Representatives:
Scott Fitzgerald: 202-225-5101
Mike Gallagher: 202-225-5665
Bryan Steil: 202-225-3031
Thomas Tiffany: 202-225-3365
Derrick Van Orden: 202-225-5506
Glenn Grothman*: 202-225-2476
Mark Pocan*: 202-225-2906
Gwen Moore*: 202-225-4572
Please note: Representatives Glenn Grothman, Gwen Moore and Mark Pocan are already cosponsors of the bill. Please call to thank them!
Please join us. Your voice, your story and your passion are important to our advocacy efforts.
THANK YOU!
Update: 2/4/2023
We have heard great news from the MBCACA lead sponsors: 65 cosponsors have officially signed on – in just under one week since introduction!
H.R. 549, the Metastatic Breast Cancer Access to Care Act, has been introduced in the 118th Congress by Reps. Garbarino (R-NY) and Castor (D-FL). At this time, we are seeking additional cosponsors for this important legislation. We hope to add Wisconsin Members in the House as cosponsors of this bill.
The bill garnered significant bipartisan support in the 117th Congress with 240 cosponsors, and we carry that momentum into this Congress. This critical legislation would waive arbitrary SSDI and Medicare waiting periods for eligible individuals with metastatic breast cancer. Metastatic breast cancer (MBC) is cancer that has spread from the breast to the bones, lungs, or other parts of the body. There is currently no cure for metastatic breast cancer, and too many individuals with this disease die waiting for their benefits. SSDI and Medicare benefits are critically important in helping to ease that financial burden for these individuals and their families. The legislative text is unchanged from the last Congress.
Under current law, if an individual is found to be disabled for the purposes of Medicare and Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI), they must wait 24 months to enroll in Medicare and 5 months to receive SSDI benefits. During this arbitrary waiting period, individuals with MBC face incredible hardships in supporting themselves and their families and receiving the appropriate medical care that they desperately need. Due to current law and average life expectancy, many individuals with MBC may never receive the benefits they are eligible for.
The Metastatic Breast Cancer Access to Care Act H.R. 549 would waive all waiting periods for Medicare and Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) for individuals with MBC who are already eligible for it.
This bill would provide much needed relief for individuals with metastatic breast cancer and their families.
Please join us. Your voice, your story and your passion are important to our advocacy efforts.
Update: 1/3/2023
Though we were not successful in getting the MBCACA on the floor for a vote, it had strong bi-partisan support in the House and Senate. Of course, we would prefer to celebrate the passage of this bill, but we can celebrate our success in building key relationships on both sides of the aisle. These relationships will be key to moving our priorities forward in the upcoming 118th Congress.
The WBCC Policy Committee, the Board of Directors and WBCC’s network worked tirelessly to gain support for this bill. Our advocates made countless calls to our members of Congress, wrote letters, lobbied on Capitol Hill, and arranged in-person and virtual meetings with members and/or staff in their Washington offices. In addition, stories written by individuals with metastatic breast cancer were taken to Washington and read to our Wisconsin members of Congress. These personal stories send a powerful message.
Though the bill did not pass, we would like to acknowledge and thank Representatives Mark Pocan and Gwen Moore, our champions, for their efforts to get the bill on the floor for a vote by the end of the 117th Congress. We hope we can count on their support again in the 118th Congress. We would also like to thank all the Wisconsin cosponsors of the bill in the House: Representatives Mark Pocan, Gwen Moore, Ron Kind and Glenn Grothman.
Background
In 2018 the National Breast Cancer Coalition (NBCC) created draft legislation, identified lead sponsors, and the bill was introduced. Both NBCC and the Wisconsin Breast Cancer Coalition (WBCC) made this legislation a priority and have worked tirelessly since the bill was introduced to get this legislation passed into law.
In 2021, due to NBCC and WBCC advocacy efforts, the Metastatic Breast Cancer Access to Care Act was reintroduced in the Senate (S 1312) and the House (HR 3183).
The MBCACA waives Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) and Medicare waiting periods for eligible individuals with metastatic breast cancer who already qualify. The waiting periods make no sense for people with metastatic breast cancer. There is currently no cure. Too many individuals with this disease die waiting for their benefits. Immediate access to SSDI and Medicare benefits is critically important to help ease overwhelming distress and financial burden on these individuals and their families.
This bill essentially omits the waiting periods for metastatic breast cancer patients who already quality for the benefits.
WBCC advocates spoke with WKOW News in Madison in October 2022 about this important legislation. Click here to see their interview.
Read an advocate’s perspective on the importance of the Metastatic Breast Cancer Access to Care Act on our blog.