Virtual Lobby Day: 170 Visits!
There are no advocates like NBCC advocates! On June 16, despite being unable to visit their members of Congress in person, over 200 NBCC advocates from 30 states completed more than 170 virtual hill meetings.
What was on the agenda? NBCC’s legislative priorities. Advocates thanked those members who had signed onto the DOD BCRP Dear Colleague letters and those who had co-sponsored the Metastatic Breast Cancer Access to Care Act, H.R. 2178/S. 1374. And they made a forceful case for support to everyone else.
In response, S. 1374 has four new co-sponsors: Senators Collins, Ernst, Feinstein, and Merkley and H.R. 2178 has 6: Representatives Cardenas, Cisneros, Costa, Lofgren, Ocasio-Cortez, and Vargas. We are confident that even more new co-sponsors will sign on soon.
Our relentless advocates continue to follow up.
We need your voice!
Has your member signed on to the bipartisan Metastatic Breast Cancer Access to Care Act? We are Dying to Know.
Learn more by watching this video: https://vimeo.com/428321292
We need your help to follow-up with your Representatives and Senators and make sure they co-sponsor this important legislation. Check the current co-sponsor lists for H.R. 2178 and S. 1374. If your Representative or Senator is not on the list, contact them today and ask them to sign on.
The Metastatic Breast Cancer Access to Care Act, initiated by the National Breast Cancer Coalition, is a bill to waive the 24-month waiting period for Medicare and the 5-month waiting period for Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) benefits for eligible individuals with, and dying from, Metastatic Breast Cancer. It is important to note that these women and men have already been through the application process and were deemed eligible for benefits. Why should they have to wait? The waiting periods are arbitrary and create undue hardship and financial burden on those with metastatic breast cancer.
Summit Public Policy Roundup
On May 19, we launched our first-ever virtual Advocate Leadership Summit. As always, the Summit was a blend of education, training, science, and public policy. NBCC advocates heard from policy experts and lawmakers during the 2020 Virtual Leadership Summit. Workshops during the Summit covered strategies for smart advocacy on Capitol Hill, using social media to enhance your advocacy efforts, an overview of the Department of Defense appropriations process, and review of the NBCC toolkit for engaging voters and candidates during the 2020 elections.
The Political Plenary kicked off with a video address by former Secretary of State and First Lady, Hillary Clinton. She spoke of her long relationship with NBCC and the importance of our cause and shared stories of our long-term partnership.
The plenary panel featured Carolyn Clancy, Deputy Under Secretary for Health, Veterans Health Administration, Cindy Pearson, Executive Director, National Women’s Health Network, former Congresswoman Donna Edwards, pollster Doug Usher and advocate Nancy Ryan, NBCC New Hampshire field coordinator. In two panels, advocates heard about the systemic changes needed in the U.S. healthcare system and the voter trends and issues impacting the 2020 elections and the need for advocacy involvement.
Rep. Adam Schiff (D-CA) delivered the Keynote Address at the annual membership meeting and took time to answer advocates’ questions.
Measuring the Coronavirus Impact on the Breast Cancer Community
Even if you responded to prior NBCC surveys, we are asking you to help us share the Breast Cancer and Coronavirus survey with your network, so that NBCC can assess the impact of the coronavirus pandemic (COVID-19) in real-time.
On an ongoing basis, NBCC is working to determine what public policies we should be focusing on to make certain the needs of the breast cancer community are met. We need your help and would like to hear more about the challenges breast cancer patients and caregivers are facing because of the pandemic, including accessing care in their community.
Please click here to answer this quick survey. We will analyze and publish the results to determine what policy steps NBCC can take moving forward.
Join Us
Join the tens of thousands like you who want an end to breast cancer. For just $35 a year, you can become an NBCC member and receive exclusive benefits. For more information about being a member, click here.
