Does the affordable healthcare bill that was recently passed have an impact on the affordability of cancer treatment?

by Dan Ritchey

     It is hard to find objective information when it comes to the recently passed Affordable Healthcare Act A.K.A. Obamacare. However I was curious to know whether or not those enrolled in the program are eligible for cancer treatment. According to an article by Forbes, the law covers cancer treatment but may limit the number of specialty doctors and drug treatments available to patients. An article published by the New York Post stated, "To keep costs down, the White House designed ObamaCare plans as cut-rate HMOs. The low profit margins have forced insurers to downsize the number of doctors and hospitals in their networks — and to slash what they cover for out-of-network treatment.

So most ObamaCare plans don’t include the vast majority of the best cancer doctors and cancer centers. That’s a huge problem for these patients. As Dr. Scott Gottlieb, a former Medicare official, writes: “Cancer patients often need the help of specialized doctors and cancer institutions that won’t make it into many of these cheapened networks.”

References:

About the Law. (n.d.). United States Department of Health and Human Services. Retrieved November 13, 2013, from http://www.hhs.gov/healthcare/rights/index.html

Goldberg, R. (2012, November 13). Death by Obamacare: ‘Reform’ reams cancer patients. New York Post  Death by Obamacare Reform reams cancerpatients Comments. Retrieved November 13, 2013, from http://nypost.com/2013/11/12/death-by-obamacare-reform-reams-cancer-patients/