Triage Cancer

Join Triage Cancer for their free webinar.

, where you’ll learn practical strategies on how to advocate for people impacted by cancer at both the state and federal levels.

Advocacy plays a crucial role in driving change, particularly in health care. A new administration brings fresh opportunities for cancer patients, caregivers, and health care professionals to engage in advocacy. As policies affecting access to care, financial protections, and treatment options evolve, it’s vital for advocates to take action and ensure the voices of the cancer community are heard.

This webinar is open to anyone passionate about advocating for individuals diagnosed with cancer—whether you're a patient, caregiver, or health care provider. Your voice matters, and taking action to protect vital rights and resources is essential.

Join us for a free, online webinar on February 20, 2025 at 11am PT / 1pm CT / 2pm ET. 

Did you know Triage Cancer has free, monthly webinars open to anyone in the cancer community? Check out their

Articles

Advocacy is essential in influencing healthcare policies, especially for cancer patients, caregivers, and professionals. With a new administration, there are opportunities to engage in advocacy at state and federal levels, impacting access to care, financial protections, and treatment options. Triage Cancer offers a free webinar on February 20, 2025, to educate and empower individuals passionate about cancer advocacy. This event is open to patients, caregivers, and healthcare providers, emphasizing the importance of taking action to protect rights and resources within the cancer community.

Join Triage Cancer for their free webinar on Post-Election Advocacy: Getting Engaged.

Learn to Advocate for the Cancer Community with Triage Cancer

Medicare open enrollment began on October 15, 2018 and continued until December 7, 2018. During the enrollment period you can make the switch from original Medicare to Medicare Advantage (or vice versa), switch from one 

 (prescription drug) plan to another. You can also enroll in a Medicare Part D plan if you didn’t when you were first eligible for Medicare, although a late enrollment penalty may apply.

Today we wanted to provide updated materials from Triage Cancer to help you with open enrollment, as well as share new resources you might find helpful!

 and we encourage you to read over these helpful facts and tips!  You can also watch our webinar replay, 

What other resources can help you make informed decisions?

can show you how the coverage choices you make affect your personal costs each year.

With this new tool all you need to do is enter your zip code, select an original Medicare plan option and then select a Medicare Advantage option to compare it to!

Your actual out-of-pocket costs depend on the exact Medicare coverage you have, your health care needs, your prescriptions, and how often you need health care services. You can also 

 for an in-depth explanation of this new tool!

Do you live in an area affected by the recent wildfires in California?

The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) has announced a Special Enrollment Period (SEP) for Medicare beneficiaries affected by wildfires. The SEP will run through March 31, 2019, and allows beneficiaries to switch, disenroll from or enroll in a Medicare Advantage plan or a Medicare Part D plan. The SEP is available to beneficiaries living in one of the affected areas and beneficiaries living elsewhere who rely on individuals in the affected area for assistance in making enrollment decisions. 

on this and other ways CMS is trying to help those affected.

Triage Cancer provides updated materials to help you with open enrollment, as well as share new resources you might find helpful.

Medicare Open Enrollment: Updated 2019 Materials and New Resources

At Triage Cancer, we know that one of the most effective ways to lower your out-of-pocket medical costs is to make sure that you have adequate health insurance that meets your individual needs.

We have a number of resources available to help you figure out your health insurance options if you don’t have coverage or are losing your coverage; and if you already have coverage, how to make changes to your health insurance coverage:

Don’t like reading? Watch our Animated Videos on:	

Watched the videos but need more? Register for our upcoming webinar on 10/16: 

10 Tips for Choosing & Using Health Insurance

Have Medicare? Watch the recording of last month’s webinar on 

Every year, most people have the ability to make changes to their health insurance coverage, including through Medicare, the Marketplace, or an employer. These changes can be made during an open enrollment period. Depending on the type of coverage you have or are applying for, there are different enrollment periods:

: each employer has their own open enrollment period, but it often occurs in the fall. Sometimes an employer offers more than one plan to choose from, and you can switch plans during open enrollment. You can ask the person at work who handles the health insurance for more information.

: open enrollment for 2018 coverage is closed, but you may still qualify for a special enrollment period to get coverage for 2018.

If you live in one of these states (AK, AL, AR, AZ, DE, FL, GA, HI, IA, IL, IN, KS, KY, LA, ME, MI, MS, MO, MT, NC, ND, NE, NJ, NH, NM, NV, OH, OK, OR, PA, SC, SD, TN, TX, UT, VA, WI, WV, WY) you use the federal Marketplace (

) and the open enrollment period for 2019 coverage is: Nov. 1 — Dec. 15, 2018

C.: November 1, 2018 — January 31, 2019

California: October 15, 2018 — January 15, 2019

Massachusetts: November 1, 2018 — January 23, 2019

Minnesota: November 1, 2018 — January 13, 2019

Rhode Island: November 1, 2018 — December 31, 2019

Other state-run Marketplaces may still decide to have different open enrollment periods than the federal Marketplace open enrollment period of Nov. 1 — Dec. 15, 2018

If you need help to choose a Marketplace plan or figure out if you qualify for Medicaid, you can visit 

You may also be able to find a local Navigator who has been trained and certified to help you enroll. Visit 

 and enter your zip code. Navigators used to be available in all states, but unfortunately, the federal government has cut funding for navigators by 84% in the last two years, so there may not be a Navigator near you. There will be no navigators at all in Iowa, Montana, or New Hampshire.

It is also important to know that for the first time navigators will be required to share information about short term health insurance plans. See our 

 about these insurance options, so you don’t fall into a trap of buying inadequate health insurance coverage.

And finally, for now, people with pre-existing medical conditions are protected against denials or exclusion periods in both the individual and employer health insurance markets. However, there are some legal cases that might impact those protections moving forward.

In early September, a hearing was held on a lawsuit 

 to strike down the ACA as unconstitutional. The judge seemed to agree that the law should be struck down, but we are waiting on a final ruling. Regardless of the ruling, the case will likely be appealed and ultimately reach the U.S. Supreme Court for a final decision.

In response, Maryland Attorney General Brian Frosh has filed a lawsuit to ask the U.S. District Court of Maryland to declare that the ACA is constitutional.

While we cannot know for sure how these lawsuits will be decided, we do know that they will have a very practical impact (positive or negative) on the lives of people diagnosed with cancer and other pre-existing conditions.

What Do You Need To Know About Open Enrollment?

Regardless of the type of job you have, if you need to take time off work because of your cancer diagnosis and treatment, you should learn about your employment rights. More people are familiar with the 

 (FMLA), which is the federal law that allows eligible employees to take time off work because of their own serious medical condition or to care for a spouse, child, or parent. The FMLA provides 12 weeks of unpaid leave, per year.

 (ADA) as a way to take time off work. But they should. The ADA requires employers to provide eligible employees with 

 in the workplace. A reasonable accommodation can include changes to work schedules, telecommuting, or even extended leave from work.

Now the FMLA and the ADA can actually work together.

For example, meet Jane. Jane has been undergoing cancer treatment. She has taken time off from work under the FMLA.  She has almost used all 12 weeks of her FMLA leave and her doctor has not yet released her to return to work. She is concerned that she will lose her job if she tells her employer she will not be able to return to work when her 12 weeks of FMLA leave are up. It is possible that if Jane is also eligible for protection under the ADA, that she could ask for additional time off as a reasonable accommodation 

 has suggested that additional time off from work will only be considered a reasonable accommodation if the length of additional leave is for a definite period of time. 

 have also shown that employers shouldn’t have rigid leave rules, but be more flexible with leave decisions on a case-by-case basis.

So, if Jane gets to the end of her FMLA leave and she calls her employer and says, “I would like more time off from work as a reasonable accommodation, but I don’t know when I will be able to return”- that is unlikely to be seen as a reasonable accommodation.  But, if Jane calls her employer and says, “I would like three more weeks off work as a reasonable accommodation, because my doctor has released me to come back to work in 3 weeks” — that is more likely to be seen as a reasonable accommodation.

Before making decisions about working through treatment or taking time off work, it is important to get the facts and learn about your options, so that you can make educated decisions about what will work for you.

For more information about your employment rights, visit: 

Regardless of the type of job you have, if you need to take time off work because of your cancer diagnosis and treatment, you should learn about your employment rights. Now the FMLA and the ADA can actually work together.

Triage Cancer

Learn to Advocate for the Cancer Community with Triage Cancer

Medicare Open Enrollment: Updated 2019 Materials and New Resources

What Do You Need To Know About Open Enrollment?

ADA and FMLA: How Laws Work Together

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