Pa. Senate passes bills removing cancer test costs for patients; measures move to House

Oct. 20—HARRISBURG — The Pennsylvania Senate passed a pair of bills proposing the elimination of out-of-pocket costs for certain genetic testing and supplemental breast cancer screenings, the timing coinciding with Breast Cancer Awareness Month.

State senators twice voted 49-0 Wednesday to approve each measure.

"It will really be a great leap forward for women in this state," said Pat Halpin-Murphy, president and founder of the Pennsylvania Breast Cancer Coalition.

Senate Bill 1330 proposes to restrict insurers from charging patients for any costs related to genetic counseling and, if indicated after counseling, genetic testing for BRCA 1 and BRCA 2 gene mutations. It was introduced by Senate Majority Leader Kim Ward, R-Westmoreland.

"I am the first female majority leader of the Senate and also the first leader to have breast cancer," Ward said before describing her pre-diagnosis struggles to get approved for a cancer screening that her insurance wouldn't cover.

Ward paid out of pocket, she said, something a lot of women couldn't afford, and was later diagnosed with cancer. It inspired her to seek changes in state law.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the two genes can protect against certain cancers, however, mutations of either cause them to work improperly and raise the risk of developing breast, ovarian and other cancers including for men.

Not everyone who inherits a mutation of either gene will develop cancer, the CDC states.

Health insurers would be required to cover the costs of an annual supplemental breast screening for women with a high lifetime risk of breast cancer under Senate Bill 1225, introduced by Sen. Bob Mensch, R-Berks. Insurers couldn't apply the cost toward a deductible or coinsurance or charge a copay, according to the bill.

MRI and ultrasound coverage under Act 52 of 2020 would extend to women with a personal history of atypical breast histologies, personal or family history of breast cancer, genetic predisposition for breast cancer, prior therapeutic thoracic radiation therapy, extremely dense or heterogeneously dense breast tissue based on breast composition categories of the Breast Imaging and Reporting Data System established by the American College of Radiology, the bill's memo states.

"This is really your work as well as our work," Mensch said at a press conference outside the Capitol following the vote, referring to members and partners of the Pennsylvania Breast Cancer Coalition. "Those of you who have family members, loved ones who are diagnosed with breast cancer, two words for you: Be there."

"There's no way to understand what they're actually going through but believe me, they need the crutch," said Mensch, who's retiring from the General Assembly but will be a board member with the Coalition.

The calendar has reached the waning days of the current Legislative Session. If the bills are to become law, they must pass through the state House which has just six scheduled session days remaining: Oct. 24-26, Nov. 14-16.

Should neither be approved and signed into law, they'd have to be reintroduced in 2023.