North American Brain Tumor Coalition Outlines Brain Tumor Research Funding Priorities

April 8, 2010

In a statement submitted to the House and Senate Appropriations Subcommittees for Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies, North American Brain Tumor Coalition Chair Joseph Fay outlined the Coalition’s fiscal year 2011 priorities for funding brain tumor research.

The Coalition endorsed the recommendation of the biomedical research community that National Institutes of Health funding be boosted to $35 billion in fiscal year 2011 and outlined specific brain tumor funding priorities that should be funded from that total.

In his statement, Mr. Fay urged a long-term commitment to basic, translational, and clinical research on brain tumors but also reminded the subcommittees of the urgent need for new brain tumor treatments and the necessity to accelerate the development of new therapies (more...)

Posted in Advocacy Positions, Brain Tumor Research, General News, Headlines

Health Reform Bill Signed Into Law; Several Provisions Will Assist Americans with Brain Tumors

April 7, 2010

President Obama signed the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act into law (Public Law 111-148) on March 23, 2010. This followed a long weekend of work by the House of Representatives that ended with approval of the health care bill by a vote of 219 to 212. This bill had been approved by the United States Senate on December 24, 2009.

One week later, on March 30, 2010, President Obama signed into law the Health Care and Education Reconciliation Act, which included a number of health-related financing and revenue changes to the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act.

With the President’s signature on these two pieces of legislation, the process begins to implement an insurance (more...)

Posted in General News, Headlines, Health Care Reform

Register NOW for Brain Tumor Action Week!

April 2, 2010

Please join the North American Brain Tumor Coalition and its friends in Washington, D.C. for Brain Tumor Action Week. On Monday, May 3, we will hold a full-day education day. On Tuesday, May 4, we will make visits to Members of Congress.

Join your friends in the brain tumor community in pressing for federal funding for brain tumor research and implementation of health reform to help uninsured brain tumor patients.

To register, please use the form at http://www.nabraintumor.org/registration10.html.

Posted in Action Items, Brain Tumor Action Week, General News, Headlines

Congress Poised to Take Final Vote on Health Care Reform; NABTC Urges Action

March 16, 2010

Final House and Senate votes on the health care reform legislation are expected the week of March 15, although some reports have suggested a delay in the vote timing. The House will consider the Senate-passed bill, and then both Houses are scheduled to consider amendments to the underlying Senate bill. While Democratic leaders and President Obama are pressing for the “yes” votes necessary for passage, there is much press coverage of the procedures that may be used to secure passage of the reform bill.

The North American Brain Tumor Coalition has not commented on those procedural matters, but it has once again joined with colleagues in the patient advocacy community to articulate the elements of health reform that are (more...)

Posted in General News, Health Care Reform

American Society for Radiation Oncology Announces Patient Protection Plan

February 7, 2010

The American Society for Radiation Oncology (ASTRO) announced a six-point patient protection on February 3, 2010. The plan was described as the culmination of a long-term effort to assure that patients receive safe and effective radiation therapy, an effort that continued at the ASTRO Board of Directors winter meeting on January 28-31, 2010.

The ASTRO plan includes the following recommendations: 1) creating a database for the reporting of linear accelerator- and computed tomography-based medical errors, 2) launching an enhanced practice accreditation program, specifically addressing new, advanced technologies such as IMRT, SBRT, and brachytherapy, 3) expanding educational programs, with special emphasis on quality assurance and safety, 4) working with patient support organizations to develop tools for patients to use in discussions (more...)

Posted in General News

Obama Administration Boosts NIH Funding in FY 2011 Budget Proposal

February 7, 2010

On February 1, 2010, the Obama Administration released its proposed budget for fiscal year 2011, including a boost of $1 billion for the National Institutes of Health (NIH). This budget implements the President’s pledge to impose an overall freeze in domestic discretionary, eliminating or cutting certain programs to permit increases for others.

In its press release announcing its budget proposal, the Department of Health and Human Services HHS) said that the $1 billion increase in NIH funding, to a total of $32.2 billion, will support innovative basic and clinical research projects. According to HHS, “This effort will be guided by NIH’s five areas of exceptional research opportunities: supporting genomics and other high throughput technologies; translating basic science into (more...)

Posted in Brain Tumor Research, General News, Spending Bills

National Institutes of Health Announces Identification of Subtypes of Glioblastoma Multiforme

February 7, 2010

In a January 19, 2010, press release, the National Institutes of Health (NIH) announced the publication of a study by The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) Research Network identifying four distinct molecular subtypes of glioblasoma multiforme (GBM). These findings were heralded as pointing the way toward more personalized approaches to treatment of GBM patients. The research team for TCGA is a collaborative effort funded by the National Cancer Institute (NCI) and the National Human Genome Research Institute (NHGRI).

The NIH release stated, “Although the findings do not affect current clinical practice, the researchers said the results may lead to more personalized approaches to treating groups of GBM patients based on their genomic alterations. The study, published Jan. 19, (more...)

Posted in Brain Tumor Research, General News

NABTC Mourns the Loss of Senator Edward M. Kennedy

August 31, 2009

The North American Brain Tumor Coalition (NABTC) mourns the loss of Senator Edward M. Kennedy, a champion for access to health care for all Americans. Senator Kennedy was a tireless friend to the NABTC and all Americans fighting for better health care. He fiercely and ceaselessly championed more biomedical research funding, a rejuvenated war on cancer, incentives for pediatric cancer therapeutic development, and universal access to health insurance.

The NABTC, a coalition of brain tumor organizations dedicated (more...)

Posted in General News

NABTC Articulates Principles of Quality Care for Brain Tumor Patients

July 22, 2009

The North American Brain Tumor Coalition has joined with other patient advocacy organizations in pressing Congress to approve health care reform that will ensure all Americans access to quality care. The Coalition has also developed and circulated to policy-makers a set of principles for quality care for brain tumor patients.

Receiving a diagnosis of a brain tumor is the beginning of a difficult journey for brain tumor patients, and the health care system is often not responsive to the needs of those patients. The Coalition has outlined the needs of brain tumor patients and will be working to ensure that a reformed health care system is responsive to these needs.

The NABTC document, Principles of Quality Care for Brain (more...)

Posted in Advocacy Positions, General News, Headlines, Health Care Reform

NABTC Joins Cancer Leadership Council In Urging Health Reform That Responds to Needs of Cancer Patients

July 22, 2009

The North American Brain Tumor Coalition joined its colleagues in the cancer community in writing all Members of Congress to express their support for legislation that will ensure all Americans access to health care. The Cancer Leadership Council also identified some key provisions that should be included in any reform bill. These elements are: 1) insurance market reforms to guarantee that individuals who have pre-existing conditions will nonetheless have access to health insurance, 2) protection from annual and lifetime insurance caps, 3) elimination of cost-sharing requirements for prevention and screening services, 4) protection of important coverage standards to ensure that the policies that Americans are offered provide them comprehensive care, 5) inclusion of consumer advocates in advisory panels (more...)

Posted in Advocacy Positions, General News, Health Care Reform