When a person is diagnosed with ovarian cancer, their whole world is often turned upside down. As they work to overcome that diagnosis, the last thing they should be worrying about is whether they can afford to pay for their treatment.
Unfortunately, many patients are faced with this dilemma, with some drugs that cost well over $10,000 a month. To ease the burden on patients, some charitable institutions and pharmaceutical companies have established patient support programs to defray out-of-pocket costs. Unfortunately, some insurance companies treat these types of payments differently from other patient payments, not counting them toward the plan’s deductible or out-of-pocket maximum. This means that patients spend more money and the patient support programs are exhausted more quickly.
U.S. Representatives Donald McEachin (D-VA) and Rodney Davis (R-IL) have introduced H.R. 5801, the Help Ensure Lower Patient (HELP) Copays Act to protect patients from increased out-of-pocket prescription drug costs. The bipartisan bill prohibits insurers from excluding the value of cost-sharing assistance from counting toward an enrollee’s annual cost-sharing limit. This legislation will help ensure that patients are able to afford the therapies that they need.
