U.S. Representative Terri Sewell, D-Alabama, spoke on the House Floor Tuesday to welcome cancer advocates from across the nation to Washington for their annual advocacy day and urged passage of her legislation, HR842, the Nancy Gardner Sewell Medicare Multi-Cancer Early Detection, MCED, Screening Coverage Act.
More than 700 cancer advocates from the American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network, ACS CAN, representing every state and all 435 congressional districts, met with lawmakers on Capitol Hill to raise awareness of the urgent need for policies that improve cancer prevention, early detection, treatment and patient support.
Sewell stated she is proud to be leading legislation to ensure access to cutting-edge early detection cancer screenings for our nation’s seniors. HR842, the Nancy Gardner Sewell Medicare Multi-Cancer Early Detection Screening Coverage Act, would create a pathway for Medicare to cover emerging diagnostic tools, once FDA-approved, which hold the promise of screening for up to 40 cancers with a simple blood test.
HR842 enjoys robust bipartisan support, with more than 295 House co-sponsors and 62 Senate co-sponsors. It is supported by more than 600 patient advocate organizations across the nation and is among the top legislative priorities of ACS CAN.
In the 118th Congress, the bill’s lead Republican sponsor, Representative Jodey Arrington of Texas, renamed the bill in honor of Sewell’s late mother, Nancy Gardner Sewell, who passed away from pancreatic cancer in June 2021. Yesterday was Nancy Gardner Sewell’s 86th birthday.
Listen to Sewell’s full remarks made on the House Floor here.
