Statement on Court Ruling and Preventive Screenings

Statement from Michael Sapienza, CEO of the Colorectal Cancer Alliance: 

"Yesterday a federal judge struck down a provision of the Affordable Care Act (ACA) that requires insurance companies to follow U.S. Preventive Service Task Force (USPSTF) guidelines and cover the cost of certain preventive cancer screenings, including tests for colorectal cancer. 

If not paused or overturned, millions of people stand to lose insurance coverage for colonoscopy, stool-DNA, FIT, and other tests for colorectal cancer, the second deadliest cancer among men and women combined in the United States.   

It also unwinds progress made by the USPSTF in 2021, when it lowered the recommended age to begin colorectal cancer screening to 45, due to an increase in young-onset colorectal cancer. The new guideline made 20 million additional people eligible for screening.  

The Alliance envisions a world free of colorectal cancer, and widespread access to screening is a key tenet for achieving that reality. Colorectal cancer is highly preventable with timely screening. Reducing access by resuming the cost barriers that existed before the ACA will lead to lives lost. 

The Colorectal Cancer Alliance is the nation’s leader in the mission to end this disease in our lifetime. We are taking action and asking the government to file a swift appeal."