Emily Taylor
Senior Member
- Messages
- 149
- Location
- Los Angeles, CA
Advocacy Action: Urge your Representative and Senators to Support Improved Coverage of Clinical Trials!
The CLINICAL TREATMENT Act (H.R. 913) was introduced by Representatives Ben Ray Lujan (D-NM-03) and Gus Bilirakis (R-FL-12) to guarantee insurance coverage of routine care costs for clinical trials. This bill targets Medicaid enrollees with a life-threatening condition or disability. Currently, Medicaid is the only insurance payer which does not provide this coverage for clinical trials.
Medicaid insures nearly one-fifth of the U.S. population and is the only major payer that is not required by federal law to provide coverage of the routine care costs for participating in a clinical trial. Improved access and coverage of clinical trial participation benefits ME/CFS patients and helps reduce the overall cost of clinical trials. This is vital for under-funded diseases, like ME/CFS, which struggles to secure funds for clinical trial research.
The Clinical Treatment Act (H.R. 913) is one step towards improving the representation of ME/CFS patients in clinical trials and reducing the cost of ME/CFS clinical trials in the future.
Congressman Bilirakis, who spoke at ME/CFS Advocacy Day in 2018, is an outspoken advocate for improving research and access for people with chronic illness.
https://solvecfs.secure.force.com/actions/kwac__takeaction?actionId=AR00064