ACCC 2026 POLICY PRIORITIES

Early 2026 Legislative Update and ACCC 2026 Policy Priorities

Legislative Update
In February 2026, several provisions supported by ACCC members--and important to cancer care teams and patients with cancer--were enacted into law as part of a broad, bipartisan federal government funding package.

Telehealth

The law includes a two-year extension of Medicare telehealth flexibilities, through December 31, 2027. This means that Medicare patients can receive telehealth visits in their home during this time period, among other flexibilities for patients and providers.

Multi-Cancer Early Detection (MCED) Screening

The Nancy Gardner Sewell Medicare Multi-Cancer Early Detection (MCED) Screening Coverage Act was also included in the final package. This legislation establishes a pathway for Medicare coverage of MCED tests once a test receives FDA approval. Currently, routine screening is only available for five types of cancer. These tests have the potential to increase the types of cancer that can be detected earlier through screening, making it more likely that treatment could be successful. ACCC worked with a coalition of over 550 advocacy organizations over several years to advocate for Medicare coverage of these tests. ACCC is grateful for the leadership of several bipartisan co-sponsors of this legislation, including Representatives Jodey Arrington (R-Texas) and Terri Sewell (D-Ala.), and Senators Michael Crapo (R-Idaho) and Ron Wyden (D-Ore.), along with many members of Congress, whose support led to passage of this important law.

Funding for the National Cancer Institute (NCI) and the National Institutes of Health (NIH)

The legislation provided $7.35 billion in funding for NCI, an increase of $128 million from FY 2025. It also included $30M in funding for the Childhood Cancer STAR Act and $50 million for the Childhood Cancer Data Initiative. In total, the National Institutes of Health received $48.7 billion in funding, an increase of $415 million from FY 2025.

ACCC 2026 Policy Priorities

In light of the shifting policy landscape and recent progress in some areas, ACCC has refreshed its list of policy priorities for the year ahead. The organization’s main advocacy priorities for 2026 include:

• Maintaining health insurance coverage and access, with a focus on Medicaid and the Affordable Care Act (ACA) subsidies;
• Timely access to patient care services, especially through reform of prior authorization processes and an improved ability to request exceptions to step therapy protocols;
• Delivery of Care, including policies to support the healthcare and cancer care workforce;
• Provider reimbursement, with a focus on mitigating any negative effects of reimbursement changes to Medicare Part B as implementation of the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) moves forward and advocating for beneficial value-based payment initiatives;
• Support for basic research in the federal government and ongoing support for access to clinical trials; and
• Support for cancer screening and prevention.