The Supreme Court is set to review several preventative care services mandated by the Affordable Care Act (ACA), also known as Obamacare. The ACA includes mandates for several preventative and screening procedures, including no-cost cancer screenings. The review could threaten access to these procedures for tens of thousands, potentially hundreds of thousands, of low-income, uninsured, or underinsured Americans. 

Related: Millions of Americans are Uninsured

What ACA Mandates Are Under Review?

The Supreme Court review focuses on whether certain provisions should be mandatory. Including those screenings was made on the recommendation of the US Preventative Services Task Force, whose members are not appointed by the president or confirmed by the Senate. 

The provisions included, which have been in place since March 2010, include several preventative healthcare services, including:

  • Cancer screenings
  • HIV prevention medication
  • Heart statins
  • Prenatal nutritional supplements
  • Physical therapy for senior fall victims

Other provisions included in the ACA are not under review, including:

  • Well-child/well-baby visits
  • Autism screenings
  • Breastfeeding support programs
  • Flu, measles, and chickenpox vaccinations

What’s At Stake

The Biden Administration estimates the at-risk programs save 15,000 to 20,000 lives annually and will disproportionately hurt low-income families and seniors. The lawsuit addressing the provisions was filed by Braidwood, which objects to covering HIV prevention medications and screenings for sexually transmitted diseases. The company, which filed the suit in 2020, is represented by Gene Hamilton, who worked in the first Trump Administration. 

The Trump Administration defended the provisions when the lawsuit was originally filed. 

Reversing 14 years of preventative services would be a damaging step backward.  More than a quarter of Americans say they’ve skipped medical treatment due to the costs, and preventative screenings, especially those for certain types of cancer, can be prohibitively expensive. 

Less Cancer is committed to prioritizing prevention, including advocating for no-cost or reduced-cost access to life-saving cancer screening. No one should face increased cancer risk or worse outcomes due to screening costs. Support our work with a donation, and let’s keep the fight for prevention moving forward.