Lawmakers should stand up for cancer patients

To the editor: It’s time for our state representatives to stand up for cancer patients. I’m a cancer survivor, and I know how important it is to have fair access to treatment. Unfortunately, some cancer patients in Michigan who take oral chemotherapy are not being treated fairly.

Cancer patients shouldn’t be forced to pay more for a different way of receiving medication, but unfortunately, this happens frequently. When doctors prescribe pills, or oral chemotherapy instead of IV chemotherapy, it can come with high out-of-pocket costs.

For many patients, that higher cost is a barrier to more effective, less invasive care. For others, it’s a major obstacle to the only treatment for their cancer. And that’s unacceptable.

The majority of other states have already passed laws to ensure oral chemotherapy fairness. We need our state representatives to have the courage to act now to help cancer patients.

 

Sandra Westover

Frederic