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H.R. 758: Breast Cancer Patient Protection Act of 2008

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H.R. 758: Breast Cancer Patient Protection Act of 2008

110th Congress · introduced 2007-01-31 · Health · Latest: Received in the Senate.

federal

Follow this bill, step by step

  1. Where it came from: introduced 2007-01-31 · official record
  2. Who proposed it: Rep. DeLauro, Rosa L. [D-CT-3] · what a sponsor is
  3. What happened next: 1 recorded vote in our records. Latest: House roll call 639 (2008): On Motion to Suspend the Rules and Pass, as Amended, HR758 (2008-09-25), Passed. See all
  4. Where it stands now: Received in the Senate. Not final yet: this can still change. We check for updates every day.
  5. If it becomes law and spends money: follow the money to money laws, then agencies and contracts and grants.

What does this mean?

Official title

Breast Cancer Patient Protection Act of 2008

Plain summary

Breast Cancer Patient Protect Act of 2008 - Amends the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA), the Public Health Service Act, and the Internal Revenue Code to require a group health plan or a health issuer offering group health insurance coverage that provides medical and surgical benefits to ensure that inpatient (and in the case of a lumpectomy, outpatient) coverage and radiation therapy are provided for breast cancer treatment. Prohibits such a plan or issuer from: (1) restricting benefits for any hospital length of stay to less than 48 hours in connection with a mastectomy or breast conserving surgery or 24 hours in connection with a lymph node dissection, insofar as the attending physician, in consultation with the patient, determines such stay to be medically necessary; or (2) requiring that a provider obtain authorization from the plan or issuer for prescribing any such length of stay. Requires such a plan or issuer to: (1) provide notice (prominently in the summary of the plan) to each participant and beneficiary regarding the coverage required under this Act; (2) ensure that coverage is provided for secondary consultations (on terms and conditions that are no more restrictive than those applicable to the initial consultations) by specialists in the appropriate medical fields to confirm or refute a diagnosis of cancer; and (3) ensure that coverage is provided for such secondary consultations whether the consultation is based on a positive or negative initial diagnosis. Prohibits such a plan or issuer from: (1) penalizing or otherwise reducing or limiting the reimbursement of a provider or specialist because of care to a participant or beneficiary in accordance with this Act; (2) providing incentives for a physician or specialist to keep the length of inpatient stays below certain limits following a mastectomy, lumpectomy, or a lymph node dissection for the treatment of breast cancer or to limit referrals for secondary consultations; or (3) providing incentives for a physician or specialist to refrain from referring a participant or beneficiary for a secondary consultation that would otherwise be covered. Applies such requirements to health insurance issuers offering coverage in the individual market. Allows a health insurance issuer that provides individual health insurance coverage to nonrenew or discontinue an individual's coverage based on the intentional concealment of material facts regarding a health condition related to the condition for which coverage is being claimed. Sets forth procedures for notice and independent, external review of any proposed nonrenewal, discontinuation, or rescission of health insurance coverage.

Congressional Research Service summary (Passed House amended), quoted unchanged (nonpartisan). Read the source.

What a vote does

A “Yea” vote

If it passes both chambers and is signed, it becomes law.

A “Nay” vote

If it is not passed, current law stays as it is.

PSI Sci description of the legislative step (not an opinion).

What does this mean? (plain words)

Official text

Breast Cancer Patient Protection Act of 2008

Source: Congressional Research Service summary (Passed House amended)

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The strongest published arguments

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Alternatives

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How did my representative vote? · This bill's floor votes

Officials and money

Sponsor: Rep. DeLauro, Rosa L. [D-CT-3] · 223 cosponsors

Cost estimate: CBO cost estimate: H.R. 758, Breast Cancer Protection Act of 2007 (2008-09-22); CBO cost estimate: H.R. 758, Breast Cancer Protection Act of 2007 (2008-09-22)

Cosponsors on this site

Tammy Baldwin (D-WI), Sanford D. Bishop, Jr. (D-GA), Emanuel Cleaver (D-MO), Diana DeGette (D-CO), Lloyd Doggett (D-TX), Kirsten E. Gillibrand (D-NY), Al Green (D-TX), Mazie K. Hirono (D-HI) and 163 more.

Sponsor's campaign money: Rep. DeLauro, Rosa L. [D-CT-3] reported raising $1.6 million (2025–2026). Details. Shown for context only; it does not mean any donor supported this bill.

Recorded votes

Words on this page, explained (3)
Appropriation
Money a legislature sets aside by law for a specific purpose. Government agencies may spend public money only as it has been appropriated.
Authorization
A law that creates or continues a government program and says what it may do, often with a suggested spending ceiling. An authorization alone does not provide money; a separate appropriation does.
Securities
Financial investments that can be bought and sold, such as stocks and bonds.

Plain meanings written from linked sources. All words.

Sources

Record fed-us-cong110-hr758 · catalog fed-us-congress-bills-cong110 · updated 2026-11-15 by psicol fed-bills-cong110