Download Top 12 Tips for Finding Financial Help

METASTATIC BREAST CANCER
Top 12 Tips
for Finding
Financial
Help
Are you looking for financial assistance
with direct medical costs (co-pays,
deductibles), related non-medical
costs (transportation, gas, child care)
or daily living expenses (rent, utilities)?
With effort and persistence, you can
find some help.
As an all-volunteer operation
MBCN does not give direct aid and
unfortunately can’t provide one-onone advice. But we have compiled the
following 12 resources and urge you
to check them out. You can find more
resources at www.mbcn.org.
1
Talk With Your Health Care Team Often a social worker or
financial person at your hospital or infusion center can offer
suggestions and direct you to local resources.
2
Social Security Disability Options Many people diagnosed
with metastatic breast cancer, also called advanced breast cancer
or Stage IV breast cancer, qualify for Social Security Disability under
the compassionate allowance program. (This assumes you have the
required work history.) Note that you need to have your own insurance
coverage for a two-year waiting period before Medicare takes effect.
See www.ssa.gov.
3
Early Life Insurance Payouts A life insurance policy ordinarily pays
benefits to a beneficiary after a policy owner dies. Those benefits
are accelerated if they are paid directly to a chronically or terminally
ill policy owner before he or she dies. Check with your insurance
agent or company to see if your policy includes or offers the option.
Group policies for term or permanent life insurance may also provide
accelerated benefits; check with your benefits administrator.
4
Cancer Care’s State-By-State Sourcebook: “A Helping HandThe Resource Guide for People with Cancer” is at www.cancercare.
org. Call Cancer Care at 800-813-4673 to speak to an oncology social
worker.
5
The Cancer Financial Assistance Coalition (www.cancerfac.org) is
a group of 14 organizations who provide a searchable database of
resources available to you based on your diagnosis and zip code. Enter
both and to get a list of organizations that potentially can help you,
including those local to your state or area.
6
Check with Individual Pharmaceutical Companies Almost every
pharmaceutical company has patient assistance programs to help
patients with the co-pay for specific drugs. The website is usually the
name of the drug. So, for example, if you are taking Herceptin and
need information on assistance with co-pays, go to www.herceptin.
com. Similarly, for Afinitor: go to www.afinitor.com. For Xgeva, see
www.xgeva.com.
7
The Health Well Foundation offers assistance with copay or
insurance premium payments for insured patients, based on
availability of funds. They have a quick eligibility test online. See www.
healthwellfoundation.org.
8
9
Patient Access Network Foundation provides co-pay, deductible
and medication financial assistance: See www.panfoundation.org.
PAF Financial Aid Fund Division is an independent division of
Patient Advocate Foundation. It provides small grants to patients
who meet financial and medical criteria. Patients who are interested in
applying for financial assistance should start by calling this division toll
free at (855) 824-7941.
10
Help Now Fund provides emergency financial assistance to
help people in active treatment with their rent and utilities. See
www.thebreastcancercharities.org/help-now-fund/.
Founded in 2004, MBCN is a national, independent,
nonprofit, patient-led advocacy organization. MBCN held
its first patient conference at Memorial Sloan-Kettering
Cancer Center in 2006. Subsequent conferences have
been held at M.D. Anderson, Dana-Farber Cancer
Institute, Indiana University’s Simon Cancer Center, Johns
Hopkins Medicine and Northwestern Medical Center.
Learn more at www.mbcn.org.
11
Call 211 Many communities have a 211 information and referral
service funded by The United Way. Call 211 or go to www.211.org
for help with food, housing, employment, health care, counseling and
more. Available in English and Spanish.
12
Freebies and Discounts for Cancer Patients: 1 Up on Cancer
compiled this list: www.1uponcancer.com/freebies-anddiscounts-for-cancer-patients/
Last updated 4/2014