August 15, 2006
From the Governor’s Press Office
(Anchorage) - Governor Frank H. Murkowski signed HB 393 August 2, a bill requiring insurance policies include colorectal cancer screening, at the Alaska Native Medical Center in Anchorage.
“Colon cancer is the second leading cause of cancer deaths in Alaska, but current state law requires that health insurance policies cover screening only for breast, cervical, and prostate cancer,” Murkowski said. “This bill completes the list, increasing Alaskans’ access to all life-saving, recommended cancer screenings.
“An estimated 57,000 Americans died from colon cancer in 2005. Screening has the potential to drastically reduce this number.”
HB 393, sponsored by Anchorage Representative Tom Anderson, expands state law by requiring all health insurance policy providers to offer colorectal cancer screening to qualified policyholders.
The minimum coverage required under the Colorectal Cancer Screening Coverage Act includes coverage for:
- all colorectal cancer examinations and laboratory tests specified in American Cancer Society guidelines for colorectal cancer screening of asymptomatic individuals
- all colorectal cancer examinations and tests that are administered at a frequency identified in American Cancer Society guidelines
- all covered individuals at least 50 years of age, or less than 50 years of age and at a high risk for colorectal cancer
- all screening options identified by the insurer
“When caught through routine screening the five year survival rate from colon cancer is over 90-percent,” Murkowski said. “The American Cancer Society says due to a lack of coverage, most Americans are not screened for the disease.”
The bill takes effect January 1, 2007.