Texas Cancer Information - Access to Cancer Care for Low-Income and Uninsured Patients

Access to Cancer Care for Low-Income and Uninsured Patients
All Counties Updated, Spring 2011!

Important Changes to the Federal Pre-Existing Condition Insurance Plan, Effective July 1, 2011
Premiums Reduced & No Denial Letter Needed

Premiums will be reduced in 18 states that are participating in the federally run plan. Texas premiums will be reduced by 23.6%.
Enrollees will no longer have to obtain a denial letter from an insurance company in order to apply. All they will need to do is obtain a letter from a physician, nurse practitioner or physician assistant dated within the last 12 months stating that they have, or have had at any time in the past, a medical condition, disability or illness.
For more information, visit the HealthCare.gov webpage Changes to the Pre-Existing Condition Insurance Plan in Your State at http://www.healthcare.gov/news/factsheets/pcip05312011a.html.
To apply, visit https://www.pcip.gov/.
For information on eligibility for the Texas Health Insurance Pool visit http://www.txhealthpool.org/eligibil.html.

The new Access to Cancer Care for Low-Income and Uninsured Patients database is intended to reach low-income or uninsured Texans seeking free or low-cost cancer screening or treatment. Texas Cancer Information staff investigated procedures, contacts and clinic locations for screening and treatment for every Texas county. Information on how to obtain cancer care services in each of these counties is now available for download in PDF format in simple language and question and answer format. Social workers or volunteer organizations can also print out this information to give to their clients.

TCI is now working on translating these resources into Spanish, starting with counties with the highest Spanish-speaking populations. There are currently Access to Care documents for 77 counties available in Spanish. More Counties!

Inclusion in any of the documents is not intended as an endorsement of any individual, provider, service or Web site.

Please see the General Guidelines for Low-Income or Uninsured Texans Seeking Cancer Care for general information about cancer resources in Texas.

The access to care documents are in PDF format. You will need the free Adobe(R) Acrobat(R) Reader to view the documents.

Access to Cancer Care by Texas County
General Guidelines for Low-Income or Uninsured Texans Seeking Cancer Care

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Access to Cancer Care by Texas County

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General Guidelines for Low-Income or Uninsured Texans Seeking Cancer Care

Although procedures may vary between counties, here are some guidelines that may assist you in locating cancer care.

To Find a Primary Care Clinic

To find out if there is a Primary Care clinic in your area where you might be able to receive cancer screening, please go to the following Web site of the Health Resources and Services Administration of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and select Texas, then your city, and click on Find Health Centers:

http://ask.hrsa.gov/pc/interim.cfm

For Women

If you are a woman and you want to get checked for cervical cancer or breast cancer, you may be able to get help through a special program called the Breast and Cervical Cancer Services (BCCS) at the Texas Department of State Health Services.

To have a PAP test for cervical cancer, you must be 18 to 64 years old.
To have a mammogram (breast cancer test), you must be 50 to 64 years old.
You will need to show how much money you make, so you may be asked to show a paycheck stub.

To find a clinic near you, please go to the following BCCS - Breast and Cervical Cancer Services Clinic Locator Web site:

http://www.dshs.state.tx.us/bcccs/locator.shtm

Cancer Centers

The National Cancer Institute (NCI) has named four cancer centers in Texas as leaders in cancer research. Two centers are in Houston, one is in Dallas and one is in San Antonio. These centers focus on finding new treatments for cancer through clinical trial testing. To find out more, please visit the Web sites or call the numbers below:

Cancer Therapy and Research Center at the UT Health Science Center at San Antonio
1-800-340-2872 or (210) 450-1000
http://www.ctrc.net/ctrc_2_2.cfm?db_content=patients

The Dan L. Duncan Cancer Center at Baylor College of Medicine
(713) 798-1354
http://www.bcm.edu/cancercenter/

Harold C. Simmons Cancer Center at UT Southwestern Medical Center
(214) 645-HOPE (4673) or (800) 460-HOPE (4673)
http://www.simmonscancercenter.org/index.html

The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center
1-877-MDA-6789 (1-877-632-6789)
http://www.mdanderson.org/contact_us/

The following University of Texas state hospitals may offer programs for low income, uninsured Texas residents. Please call to find out if you qualify:

The University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston
Access Center 1-800-917-8906 or (409) 772-2222.
http://www.utmbhealthcare.org

The University Health Science Center at Tyler
http://www.uthct.edu/patientcare/

Other hospitals and physicians in your area may also treat low-income or uninsured patients. You would need to contact them directly for more information.

For U.S. Military Veterans

If you are a U. S. military veteran, you may be able to be seen at a VA (Veterans Affairs) clinic. To find out more about veteran’s benefits, please contact:

Veterans Affairs
1-877-222-8387
http://www.va.gov

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You may be able to find local facilities in or around your county that may possibly be able to screen or treat a low-income or uninsured cancer patient. If you are looking for help or information on services or programs in your area, please dial 2-1-1 or click on the link https://www.211texas.org/211/search.do and type in cancer detection in the Service You Need box and the county where you live in the or County box.

Legal Aid Organizations

The following not-for-profit legal aid organizations offer professional legal help for elderly and/or low income patients who cannot access health care because they have been denied Medicare, Medicaid or health care benefits by a county agency or a hospital district. Please visit the Web sites or call the numbers below for more information:

Legal Aid of NorthWest Texas
http://www.lanwt.org
Dallas: (214) 748-1234
Fort Worth: 1-800-955-3959 or 817-336-3943
Outside Metroplex Area: 1-888-529-5277

Texas Rio Grande Legal Aid
http://www.trla.org
1-888-988-9996

Lone Star Legal Aide
http://www.lonestarlegal.org
1-800-733-8394
(Serves Angleton, Beaumont, Bellville, Belton, Bryan, Conroe, Galveston, Houston, Longview, Nacogdoches, Paris, Texarkana, Tyler and Waco)

Heart of Texas Legal Services 1-888-756-7066

Other Resources

There are many groups that help cancer patients. These groups may offer financial assistance, support services or free information about cancer. You can get a list of these groups from the National Cancer Institute (NCI) by clicking on or typing in the following link:
https://cissecure.nci.nih.gov/factsheet/FactsheetSearch.aspx?FSType=8.1

For more information, you may also call the National Cancer Institute’s Cancer Information Service at 1-800-4-CANCER (1-800-422-6237).
The American Cancer Society (ACS) also has support groups and information about cancer. You may call 1-800-227-2345 or go to the website:
http://www.cancer.org
The Lance Armstrong Foundation (LAF) has information about financial assistance and support groups. Please call 1-877-231-8820 or 1-866-673-7205 or visit the Web site:
http://www.livestrong.org
Susan G. Komen for the Cure, is a breast cancer helpline. Please call 1-877-456-6636 (1-877-GOKOMEN) or visit the Web site:
http://www.komen.org
Visit the Texas Cancer Information Web site for lists of doctors, hospitals, breast and colon cancer screening services, home health agencies, and hospices. You can find support, counseling, education and other help such as transportation, housing and medical equipment by clicking on Support - Local/Community Resources at the top of the page.
http://www.texascancer.info