{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["https://sewell.house.gov/2024/6/rep-sewell-s-legislation-to-expand-access-to-cutting-edge-cancer-screenings-passes-unanimously-in-the-house-ways-and-means-committee", "The Nancy Gardner Sewell Medicare MCED Screening Coverage Act Passes Unanimously in the House Ways and Means Committee", "2024-06-27", "2024", "2024-06", "Democrat", "House", "AL", "Terri A. Sewell", "S001185", "sewell.house.gov", "sewell", "https://sewell.house.gov/press-releases", "scraper", "Washington D.C. \u2014 Today, U.S. Rep. Terri Sewell (AL-07) celebrated as her legislation to expand access to cutting-edge cancer screenings for America\u2019s seniors cleared a key hurdle. H.R. 2407, the Nancy Gardner Sewell Medicare Multi-Cancer Early Detection (MCED) Screening Coverage Act, was marked up and passed by the House Ways and Means Committee this morning by a unanimous, bipartisan vote of 38-0.\n\nWatch Rep. Sewell's remarks on YouTube here.\n\n\u201cCancer knows no political party, and I\u2019m proud of the bipartisan and unanimous work of the Ways and Means Committee to advance this bill,\u201d said Rep. Sewell. \u201cAfter years of tireless advocacy, we are one step closer to expanding access to new, early detection cancer screenings for our seniors.\u201d\n\n\u201cWhile my mother is no longer with us, I know that she is smiling down on us today,\u201d continued Sewell. \u201cThe legacy of Nancy Gardner Sewell will live on in the millions of Americans whose lives will be changed by this legislation. What keeps me going is knowing that what we do today will save countless lives in the future and pave the way for a world without cancer.\u201d\n\nThanks to cutting-edge scientific advancements, new MCED screenings are emerging which hold the potential to detect dozens of forms of cancer with a simple blood test. However, under current law, it could take more than a decade before Medicare has the authority to cover these screenings once they are FDA approved.\n\nThe Nancy Gardner Sewell Medicare MCED Screening Coverage Act would create a pathway for Medicare to cover MCED screenings once they are FDA approved. In the 118th Congress, the bill\u2019s Republican lead, Rep. Jodey Arrington (TX-19), surprised Rep. Sewell by naming it after her mother, the late Nancy Gardner Sewell, who lost her battle to pancreatic cancer in June 2021.\n\nH.R. 2407 enjoys the support of bipartisan majorities in both the U.S. House and Senate and is endorsed by more than 500 organizations across the nation. It is currently co-sponsored by 285 members of the House of Representatives and 62 Senators.\n\n\u201cWe are pleased to see the House Committee on Ways and Means take a step toward passing the bipartisan Nancy Gardner Sewell MCED Screening Coverage Act,\u201d said Dr. Karen E. Knudsen, CEO of the American Cancer Society and American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network. \u201cWe thank Representatives Jodey Arrington (R-TX) and Terri Sewell (D-AL) for continuing to champion this important legislation which has the potential to make a meaningful difference in the lives of Medicare enrollees and their families. In 2024, more than 2 million Americans are expected to be diagnosed with cancer and over 1 million of those cases are expected to be diagnosed in individuals over the age of 65. The Act creates a pathway to ensure timely Medicare coverage of new, innovative multi-cancer screening tests and expand access to early detection once clinical benefit is shown.\u201d\n\n\u201cThe Prevent Cancer Foundation celebrates this important step in making access to MCED tests closer to reality for millions of older Americans,\u201d said Jody Hoyos, CEO of the Prevent Cancer Foundation. \u201cThank you to Representatives Jodey Arrington (R-TX) and Terri Sewell (D-AL) for their leadership. The advocacy community will continue to support legislation that brings early detection to all because Early Detection = Better Outcomes.\u201d\n\n\u201cThe Association of Cancer Care Centers (ACCC) greatly appreciates the House Committee on Ways and Means taking this important step toward passing the bipartisan Nancy Gardner Sewell Medicare Multi-Cancer Early Detection Screening Coverage Act (H.R. 2407),\u201d said ACCC Executive Director Christian Downs, JD, MHA. \u201cWe thank Representatives Jodey Arrington (R-TX) and Terri Sewell (D-AL) for their tireless advocacy on this important legislation. ACCC members are all too familiar with the toll cancer takes on patients when diagnosed at a late stage. Far too many patients have died because their cancer wasn\u2019t caught early enough. Late-stage cancer diagnosis is often avoidable, and if cancers are caught earlier and proper treatment is administered, outcomes are typically more successful. This legislation will expand seniors\u2019 access to advanced cancer screenings through the Medicare program\u2014enabling earlier detection and improving outcomes.\u201d\n\n\u201cWe lose over 600,000 Americans every year to cancer, often because their cancers were detected too late,\u201d said Ovarian Cancer Research Alliance\u2019s President and CEO Audra Moran. \u201cMany cancers, including ovarian cancer, have no recommended early screenings available. This status quo cannot stand. The Medicare Multi-Cancer Early Detection Screening Coverage Act would ensure seniors\u2019 timely access to MCED tests when they are deemed to be safe and effective by the FDA. Our nation\u2019s health rests on equal access to quality healthcare and we're grateful to the committee and its members for this important action today.\u201d\n\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-07T21:11:47Z"]], "columns": ["url", "title", "date", "year", "month", "party", "chamber", "state", "member_name", "bioguide_id", "domain", "scraper", "source", "date_source", "text", "has_text", "collected_at", "updated_at"], "primary_keys": ["url"], "primary_key_values": ["https://sewell.house.gov/2024/6/rep-sewell-s-legislation-to-expand-access-to-cutting-edge-cancer-screenings-passes-unanimously-in-the-house-ways-and-means-committee"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 0.9484216570854187, "source": "dwillis/congress-press", "source_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press", "license": "MIT", "license_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press/blob/main/LICENSE"}