Tuesday, January 12, 2016

MPN Community joined by legislators in speaking up on Medicare's plan for Myelofibrosis

For the past several months we've kept you informed and taking action on Medicare's pending decision of whether to provide coverage for people with myelofibrosis seeking a stem cell transplant. Currently there is no official ruling from Medicare on whether this treatment is covered, leaving many patients to risk paying out of pocket (running potentially several hundred thousand dollars) or scrambling to find alternative ways to cover it. 

While we are awaiting decisions, we are pleased that The Honorable Scott Garrett, Congressman from the 5th District of New Jersey, has written a letter to the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services in support of providing full coverage to patients. Please join us in thanking him for his support for the myeloproliferative neoplasms community! 

Expanding upon their success with myelodysplastic syndromes, Be The Match and the National Marrow Donor Program have been leading the charge to increase coverage for people with myelofibrosis. We expect word about Medicare's decision in the coming weeks and will let you know ASAP. 

Read our previous posts about this issue:

Help Fix Medicare Coverage for Stem Cell Transplant - May 2015
Update on Medicare coverage decision for Stem Cell Transplant in Myelofibrosis - Oct. 2015