In April 2024, Florida passed CS/HB 241: Coverage for Skin Cancer Screenings. The bill requires contracted state group health insurance plans to cover annual skin cancer screenings performed by specified persons without imposing a cost-sharing requirement. This removes a financial barrier for many Florida residents who may have avoided screenings due to cost. Early detection is the next best thing to prevention when it comes to cancer care, in terms of both health outcomes and cost.
Skin cancer is the most common cancer in the United States but is also very treatable When detected early, the five-year survival rate for melanoma is 99%. However, there are disparities that prevent some populations from having access to early detection. Rural populations face higher prevalence of skin cancer history across most social determinants of health. These disparities are then magnified by other factors like race and ethnicity. Black and Hispanic people in rural areas making under $100,000 a year have approximately twice as high odds of having skin cancer history than their urban counterparts. This is noteworthy because the estimated five-year melanoma survival rate for Black patients is only 70 percent, versus 94 percent for white patients. In fact, non-Hispanic Black Americans in rural areas have the highest cancer mortality in general amongst any group. This difference in mortality for Black Americans underscores the importance of initiatives like CS/HB 241 in reducing barriers to care and bridging the gap in health disparities.
Legislation focused on prevention and early detection go hand in hand with addressing health disparities among underserved populations like rural and Black Americans. Florida’s effort to cover skin cancer screenings is an example to other states to help reduce the gaps in skin cancer prevention, treatment and survival.