Cancer screenings could get more support through Medicare under new bill in congress

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Cancer screening could get a boost from Medicare through new legislation gaining support in Congress.

Earlier this year, a bipartisan group of lawmakers introduced the Nancy Gardner Sewell Medicare Multi-Cancer Early Detection (MCED) Screening Coverage Act. It would allow Medicare to cover MCED tests, once approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), and once clinical benefit has been shown.

The bill has gained majority support in the Senate and the House of Representatives, with at least 52 senators and 231 congressmembers lending their support. The American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network (ACS CAN) announced the progress on the legislation this week.

“This demonstrates a shared commitment to advancing innovative solutions that transcend partisan divides for the greater good,” ACS CAN President Lisa Lacasse said in a statement.

“The evidence overwhelmingly supports that detecting cancer earlier can be the difference between life and death,” she said. “When cancer is detected at an earlier stage, it is often easier and less costly to treat, and patients are more likely to survive.”

She cited the ACS Cancer Statistics 2025 and the accompanying Cancer Facts & Figures 2025, which estimated more than 2 million Americans — more than 1.05 million men and 988,660 women — will be diagnosed with some form of cancer this year. Prostate cancer is the projected leading type for men at 313,780, or 30% of all new diagnoses. In women, breast cancer is the leading type, with 316,950 new cases expected. For women and men, lung cancer is expected to be the second-most diagnosed, with colon and rectum cancer placing third.

Among all new cases, more than 1 million are expected to be in people aged 65 years or older. While the ACS CAN endorsement and the bill do not mention primary care, ACS maintains recommendations on screening to guide patients to talk to their doctors about screening for common forms of cancer.

ACS CAN credited Sen. Mike Crapo (R-Idaho) and Sen. Michael Bennet (D-Colorado) and Rep. Jodey Arrington (R-Texas) and Rep. Terri Sewell (D-Alabama) for their leadership as bill sponsors. The four issued their statements of support in an announcement about the reintroduction of the bill earlier this year. It had been proposed for consideration in 2023.

Bennet’s office published this summary about the bill, which would:

• Establish a coverage pathway under Medicare for certain FDA-approved MCED tests, which can screen for dozens of cancer types, many of which currently lack an effective screening option
• Authorize CMS to provide Medicare coverage for FDA-approved MCED screening tests, enabling beneficiaries to access these technologies
• Maintain CMS authority to use an evidence-based process to determine coverage parameters for these new tests
• State that new diagnostic technologies will supplement, not replace, existing screenings and will not impact existing coverage and cost-sharing

“This legislation, for which ACS CAN has long advocated, creates a pathway to ensure timely Medicare coverage of new, innovative multi-cancer screening tests after FDA approval and clinical benefit has been shown,” Lacasse said. “As we work to lower the burden of cancer for everyone, we urge Congress to immediately prioritize the passage of this bill.”