Genetic Testing to be Covered by Insurance Companies Under the Affordable Care Act
Under the Affordable Care Act insurance companies will be required to offer genetic testing for various diseases, such as the testing of BRCA – the gene known to be a precursor to breast cancer.
Previously, insurance companies were not required to provide genetic testing or screening, but under the Affordable Care Act those companies will be required to provide those services and in many cases without a co-pay.
Healthcare exchange policies are also required to cover annual mammograms for women over age 40. Chemoprevention for women at a higher risk of breast cancer is also covered under the new healthcare policies.
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Offering genetic testing is key to preserving lives. According to the American Cancer Society, in 2013 an estimated 234,580 women will be diagnosed with breast cancer and 40,030 will die from the disease.
Most insurance policies did not cover preventive genetic testing or even mammograms even though genetic testing can sometimes offer different course of treatment that may be more effective, according to Pam Anderson, cancer services coordinator for the Georgia Department of Community Health.
"The issue that really we have is not so much the uninsured as the underinsured," Anderson said. "There are still insurance companies out there that don't pay for mammograms. There are people that have high deductibles and they have to meet their deductible first."
Should a woman discover that she is at risk for breast cancer due to the existence of mutated genes there are more treatment options available as opposed to waiting to be diagnosed with cancer.
BRCA specific genetic testing is not only helpful in detecting breast cancer, but ovarian cancer as well which is more difficult to detect.
Under the Affordable Care Act preventive genetic testing will be more widely available to women, according to The Augusta Chronicle.
Policies offered in the healthcare exchanges will be required to cover preventive services, such as genetic testing, with no co-pay providing a level of coverage that was previously not available to many women.
