WASHINGTON, Nov. 10 (UPI) -- Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) announced a proposal on Monday for Medicare to cover lung cancer screenings.
"This has the potential of being one of the most significant cancer mortality-reducing efforts to date. We are finally focusing on what is a quarter of all cancer, and that's lung cancer," Ambrose told NBC News.
Though insurance people get through their employer or on their own often covers these screenings, Medicare has not been covering them. The screenings typically cost around $300, and many people who are eligible for Medicare cannot afford that expense. Since this announcement, CMS has opened a comment period that will go for 30 days.
"Lung cancer claims more lives each year than do colon, prostate, ovarian and breast cancers combined," says the Mayo Clinic.
