FACT SHEET: As Part of the Inaugural National Cancer Prevention and Early Detection Month, the Biden Cancer Moonshot Announces Commitments from Employers and Labor Unions to Make Cancer Screenings More Accessible for American Workers
Today, the Biden Cancer Moonshot is joined by leading employers and labor organizations to announce new actions aimed at improving equitable access and utilization of cancer screenings to save and extend the lives of more Americans.
Last month, the Biden Cancer Moonshot convened a diverse and influential set of employers—representing more than 6.5 million American workers—to advance knowledge-sharing and best practices to make cancer screenings more accessible for their employees. Nearly 2 million Americans are diagnosed with cancer each year, with breast, lung, and colorectal cancers accounting for more than half of cancer deaths in the United States. Recommended screenings, even in the absence of notable symptoms, can detect these cancers early, increasing the likelihood of successful treatment and improved patient outcomes. Early diagnosis can also reduce the cost of employee health care and cancer treatment.
Improving early detection is critical to ending cancer as we know it, a priority of President Biden’s Unity Agenda – a call for solving big challenges that unite all Americans. Earlier cancer diagnosis, including through increased public awareness and access to cancer screenings, can improve health outcomes and reduce the cost of cancer care by billions of dollars each year.
The Biden Cancer Moonshot is announcing the following actions to advance access to cancer prevention and early detection for American workers:
The American Cancer Society (ACS) and Color Health (Color) will provide free at-home screening, starting with colorectal cancer, with plans to expand to other at-home screening. Beginning in June 2024, ACS and Color will leverage partnerships with last-mile health organizations including Federally Qualified Health Centers and community health clinics to make at home-screening for colorectal cancer freely available, especially for people who are under- and uninsured. Individuals utilizing the at-home screening will also have access to diagnostic follow-up support through Color and ACS’s National Cancer Information Center for cancer screening information. The organizations will jointly share and disseminate initial findings from the new initiative in early 2025.