Patient Resources

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Patient Resources Overview

At Hope Abounds Cancer Network we believe that every patient should have the information necessary to make informed decisions pertaining to their or their loved ones’ cancer journey.

Understanding your diagnosis, which specialist is going to help with each step of your care, as well as being informed to make the best decisions possible are all essential to obtaining the best care in your healing journey.

IN THIS SECTION

Guidelines to Help Decision-making

Is Genetic Testing right for me?

Cancer Family History Tool (with video)

Legal Protections for Patients

Research findings

Available Outside Resources

Guidelines to Help Decision-making

Is Genetic Testing right for me?

Access the Genetic Testing article

Have you ever felt like cancer is such an unknown and there is so much information out there to read through? Have you ever wondered how genetic cancers work?

Cancer Family History Tool

Access the Family History Tool page

Hope Abounds has created a Family History Tool that screens for hereditary cancer syndromes, and can also determine if a patient may be eligible for hereditary cancer testing.

Legal Protections for Patients with a Genetic Alteration

Equal Employment Opportunity Commission
EEOC.gov

A question that many of your patients may ask is if they will be discriminated against if a genetic abnormality is found.

The following laws have been put in place to ensure that patients diagnosed with a hereditary cancer genetic alteration are protected.

Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act (GINA)
http://www.ginahelp.org/
GINA is a federal law that took effect on November 1, 2009. This law protects patients from discrimination for health insurance and employment.

Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPPA)
https://www.hhs.gov/hipaa/index.html
HIPPA is enforced by the US Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). This organization enforces this federal civil rights law to protect individuals from unlawful discrimination.

The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (ACA) significantly expanded health insurance availability and consumer protections for all Americans. The law contains several provisions that benefit people affected by cancer, banning the practice of charging more or even potentially denying health insurance coverage due to a pre-existing health condition, prohibiting health plans from putting annual or lifetime dollar limits on most benefits, and more.

If your patients believe that their legal rights under the Affordable Care Act have been violated, they should contact their health insurer first to understand its coverage decision. If the issue cannot be resolved directly with the insurer, the next step is to contact your state insurance commissioner’s office.

Finally, you can contact the Center for Consumer Information and Insurance Oversight (CCIIO) Health Insurance Hotline at (410) 786-1565 or email: phig@cms.hhs.gov.

Patient

This is my story.

"I called many breast organizations in Wilmington, but the one that called me back was Hope Abounds and it was the voice of hope. They told me a lot about people that they've known with metastatic breast cancer, so that gave me more hope. That's what Hope Abounds provided.”

Deborah H.