Dear NCCRT Members and 80% Partners,

We are thinking of you and hope that you stay healthy and safe during this latest surge of cases in the COVID-19 pandemic. We also want to share our gratitude with those of you who are working long hours on the front lines in health care. We are humbled by your dedication and appreciate all that you are doing to care for people in your communities.

Please read on for several updates and a special message from Dr. Steven Itzkowitz, our new NCCRT chair.

Be safe and well,

The NCCRT Team

Policy Success: Health Plans Can No Longer Impose Cost Sharing for Follow-up Colonoscopy

For years NCCRT members have been advocating for a policy fix to ensure patients do not receive charges for a colonoscopy following a positive non-colonoscopy screening test. (The Affordable Care Act eliminates cost-sharing for United States Preventive Services Task Force–recommended preventative services for individuals who are privately insured, including screening for colorectal cancer, but some health plans apply cost-sharing to follow-up colonoscopies.) As of Monday, this policy loophole has been addressed!

On January 10th, the Departments of Labor, Health and Human Services, and the Treasury issued FAQs regarding coverage of colonoscopies pursuant to USPSTF recommendations. The FAQ specifies that plans are required to cover without cost-sharing, a follow-up colonoscopy performed to evaluate a positive non-invasive stool-based screening test or direct visualization test. Plans and issuers must provide coverage without cost sharing for plan or policy years beginning on or after May 31, 2022.

The Administration’s new policy does not change Medicare’s rules, which have not been updated to provide coverage of follow-up colonoscopies at no cost. With respect to Medicaid coverage, individuals who have Medicaid because their states expanded the program would receive a follow-up colonoscopy at no cost. However, individuals in the traditional Medicaid programs would not necessarily benefit from the new policy (because preventive services are not a mandatory benefit for this population), though each state could choose to update their Medicaid benefits.

Despite these limitations, this is a tremendous success, thanks in no small part to the work of numerous NCCRT members.

View the FAQs (see questions seven and eight on pages 11-12).

View the ACS CAN press release: New Guidance from Administration Helps Ensure Coverage for Follow-up Colonoscopies, Will Save Lives from Colon Cancer.

New 80% Blog Post: Welcome to the New Year from Dr. Steven Itzkowitz, NCCRT Chair

Don’t miss the latest post on the 80% Blog from Steven Itzkowitz, MD, FACP, FACG, AGAF of Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, our new NCCRT chair! Hear his reflections on our work in 2021, a bit about what the NCCRT is working on in 2022, and his hopes for our work together this year.

NCCRT Welcomes a New Program Manager!

We’re excited to welcome Ivonne Lopez, MA, to the NCCRT team! Ivonne will be responsible for managing ongoing NCCRT projects, assisting the directors in planning NCCRT events and strategic forums, among other activities. Until recently, Ivonne served as the COVID-19 Response Project Manager for the Hispanic Health Council in Hartford, CT. She has a Bachelor’s degree in Sociology and a Master’s degree in Global Development with a concentration in Conflict Resolution. Ivonne brings a wealth of experience working with volunteers, creating strategies to work effectively with diverse populations, and managing complex projects and programs.

We are thrilled for Ivonne to join the NCCRT team and hope you will have the opportunity to get to know her soon!

Call for Nominations for the 2022 Cancer Prevention Laurels Awards

The NCCRT is pleased to join the Prevent Cancer Foundation as co-sponsors of their prestigious Laurel awards program. You are invited to nominate individuals who you believe deserve this recognition. Awards will be made in these categories to recognize work in any area of cancer prevention or early detection, especially in times of COVID:

• Cancer Prevention Laurel for National Leadership
• Cancer Prevention Laurel for Dedication to Community Service
• Cancer Prevention Laurel for Increasing Health Equity through Innovation

You may make one or more nominations; however, you may nominate someone for only one award category and may make only one nomination per award category. Provide a letter for each nomination describing why the nominee should be recognized with a particular award and include a short biographical sketch (no CVs, please). Submit your nominations by COB on Wednesday, March 2. If you have any questions, please contact Hayley Berger at [email protected].

Additionally, please save the date for the Foundation’s annual Prevent Cancer Dialogue: Prevention, Screening, Action on June 9-10, 2022. For more about the Laurels awards and the Dialogue, visit www.preventcancerdialogue.org.

Southeastern Colorectal Cancer Consortium Save the Date

Save the date for the 2022 Southeastern Colorectal Cancer Consortium (SECRCC) conference to be held June 15-17, 2022, in Irving, Texas. The conference provides an opportunity for consortium members to discuss challenges and share knowledge, tools, resources, and strategic approaches to increase CRC screening rates for the southeast.

Many thanks for the great work you do!

The NCCRT Team

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