Last week, the Kansas Insurance Department announced the state will require all health insurers to cover 3D mammograms by 2019, according to an Aug. 9 article by the Kansas City Star.
The department released an official statement announcing the policy change, a move that came after Missouri legislators voted to enact a similar policy in July. Kansas joins at least seven other states that have enacted similar policies in the last few years, including Texas, New York and Maryland.
“This modern technology is providing physicians with great opportunities to diagnose and treat breast cancer more quickly,” said Assistant Kansas Insurance Commissioner Clark Shultz in a prepared statement. “This is a win-win for both the patient and the physician—it is taking advantage of modern healthcare technology at no additional cost to the patient.”
Starting in 2019, all Kansas insurance plans must cover 3D mammograms, or digital breast tomography (DBT) scans, and most will have to do so at no cost to the consumer, according to the article.
“Moving forward, we’ll continue to work closely with state and federal regulators to ensure we’re improving access to critical preventive services while also protecting overall affordability for patients and taxpayers,” Cathryn Donaldson, a spokeswoman for America's Health Insurance Plans, told the Kansas City Star.
A recent graduate from Dominican University (IL) with a bachelor’s in journalism, Melissa joined TriMed’s Chicago team in 2017 covering all aspects of health imaging. She’s a fan of singing and playing guitar, elephants, a good cup of tea, and her golden retriever Cooper.