[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 150 (2004), Part 13]
[House]
[Page 18178]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                   ONCOLOGISTS GIVE CONGRESS BAD NEWS

  (Mr. LAMPSON asked and was given permission to address the House for 
1 minute, and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. LAMPSON. Mr. Speaker, oncology services are critical for Texans. 
The American Cancer Society expected 83,400 new cancer patients for 
Texas in 2003.
  Cancer sufferers need access to care near where they live, and they 
need stability of care. An accessible, caring oncology clinic is 
welcome news for people who have heard some very bad news from their 
diagnosis. Congress gave some very bad news to oncologists in the 
passage of the Medicare bill this past session.
  The American Society of Clinical Oncology came out on September 8 
with their take on the effects of this bill. Their analysis finds that 
half of practices expect that they will pay more than they are 
reimbursed for specific drugs for anemia or lung, colon, or pancreas 
cancers; that they expect a loss of funds for community-based cancer 
care in the range of 43 to 54 percent; and that one-fourth of the drugs 
used for cancer treatment will cost the typical oncology practice more 
than what is covered by Medicare.
  I urge my colleagues to press for restoring oncologists' ability to 
give cancer patients the ability and stability in treatment they need 
to fight their illnesses. Congress should not deny the drugs necessary 
to those who need them in this life or death struggle.

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