Gov. Kay Ivey has signed into law a bill to require insurance companies to cover prostate cancer screening at no cost for men who are at high risk of the disease.
The bill was sponsored by Sen. Steve Livingston, R-Scottsboro, and Rep. Jeremy Gray, D-Opelika. The amendment to rename the bill was brought forth by state Rep. Juandalynn Givan, D-Birmingham.
Lawmakers passed the bill last week and named it after Huntsville businessman and cancer survivor David McElhaney and AL.com columnist Roy S. Johnson.
Johnson reported that one in eight men will be diagnosed with the disease in their lifetime, according to the American Cancer Society. One in six Black men will get such news.
“I was diagnosed with prostate cancer in July and, well, it pretty much took command of my days. And nights,” Johnson wrote earlier this month.
“Now, more than six months after my diagnosis, I almost forget I have cancer, that I’m a member of the fraternity of one in eight men who’ll be diagnosed with the disease in their lifetime, one in six Black men.”
Prostate cancer is highly treatable and early detection is critical.
Screening procedures covered under the bill include, at a minimum, a prostate-specific antigen (PSA) blood test and a digital rectal examination.
Insurers are required to cover screening for men over 50 at no cost.
Men over 40 who are at high risk are also covered at no-cost.
The bill spells out the criteria that define high risk:
- Black men of any age.
- Men who have a father, brother, or son who have been diagnosed with prostate cancer, died of prostate cancer, or received a cancer diagnosis associated with a higher risk of prostate cancer.
- Carry a genetic marker known to be associated with an increased risk of prostate cancer.
The law takes effect Oct. 1.
