Smith, Castor Reintroduce the Access to Genetic Counselor Services Act

Washington, D.C. – Reps. Adrian Smith (R-NE) and Kathy Castor (D-FL) recently introduced the Access to Genetic Counselor Services Act, legislation which would allow for Medicare reimbursement to licensed genetic counselors for services which would otherwise be reimbursable if provided by a physician.

Genetic counselors have extensive training in identifying which tests are most appropriate for a particular patient, and how to interpret test results to best inform the patient’s plan of care. With a wide variety of tests available on the market, leveraging the knowledge and experience of a genetic counselor can save both patients and the taxpayer money by avoiding unnecessary testing and allowing physicians to focus their time on what they do best – treating patients.

“Expanded access to genetic counseling will improve the lives of seniors across the country” said Rep. Smith. “Rapidly advancing technology and ever-growing knowledge of the human genome and its relationship with our health means seniors will be able to identify risks and diseases even earlier, improving outcomes and lowering treatment costs.”

“Genetic counselors guide and support patients and their families through some of the most difficult moments in their lives with expertise and compassion, and are an integral part of the care team,” said Rep. Castor. “I am proud that the University of South Florida is home to the first and only Genetic Counseling Graduate Program in the State, preparing students with the technical knowledge and clinical expertise to treat our neighbors. The common-sense, cost-effective Access to Genetic Counselor Services Act would help grow the genetic counseling profession and ensure our neighbors get the most accurate care.”

“Recognizing genetic counselors as Medicare providers would be tremendously valuable in ensuring patients receive timely, appropriate, and high-quality care. Many cancers have a genetic component, and it is genetic counselors who provide the critical expertise and reassurance families need to understand testing options and familial risk. That is why Cancer Partners of Nebraska proudly supports the Access to Genetic Counselor Services Act, led by Congressman Adrian Smith and Congresswoman Kathy Castor, which will benefit countless seniors, including those here in Nebraska,” saidJustin Rousek, PhD, MPH, MS, CEO at Cancer Partners of Nebraska.

“Genetic counselors are specifically trained to help patients understand complex test results, weigh options, and make informed decisions for themselves and their families,” saidDeborah Cragun, PhD, MS, CGC, Director of USF Genetic Counseling Graduate Program. “Allowing Medicare to directly reimburse for services provided by genetic counselors is a practical step toward more equitable, person-centered genomic care. By supporting the Access to Genetic Counselor Services Act, Representative Castor is advancing a policy that improves access, supports high-quality care, and uses health-care dollars more wisely.”

“Genetic counselors serve as connectors to the personalized care that could make all the difference for Medicare patients and their families facing diseases like hereditary cancer and Alzheimer’s disease,” said Sara Pirzadeh-Miller, MS, CGC, president of the National Society of Genetic Counselors and a cancer genetic counselor in Texas. “We’re so grateful that Representatives Smith and Castor, plus many others in Congress, understand the tremendous value that genetic counselors offer for their constituents and America’s healthcare system.”

Read the full letter text of the bill here.

Supporting Organizations:

• Access to Expanded Carrier Screening Coalition (AECS)
• ACT Genetics
• Advocate Genetics
• Alexion, AstraZeneca Rare Disease
• AliveandKick'n
• Alliance for Patient Access
• Alliance of Dedicated Cancer Centers
• ALS Association
• American Board of Genetic Counseling
• American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network
• American College of Medical Genetics and Genomics
• American Kidney Fund
• American Parkinson Disease Association
• American Society for Reproductive Medicine
• American Society of Human Genetics
• Amyloidosis Foundation
• Arizona Genetics Alliance
• Ascension St. Vincent
• Association for Creatine Deficiencies
• Association of Cancer Care Centers (ACCC)
• Avera Health
• Avery's Hope
• Barth Syndrome Foundation
• BillionToOne, Inc. (BillionToOne Laboratory)
• Born a Hero Research Foundation
• Boston University (BU) Chobanian & Avedisian School of Medicine
• Brigham and Women's Hospital
• Cancer Advocacy Group of Louisiana (CAGLA)
• Cancer Partners of Nebraska
• Cancer Resource Foundation, INC; DBA Cancer1Source
• Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine
• CDH International
• Chicago Genetic Consultants
• Children's Healthcare of Atlanta Cardiology
• Children's Hospital Colorado
• Children's Hospital of Philadelphia
• Children's Wisconsin
• Choroideremia Research Foundation
• City of Hope National Medical Center
• Coalition to Cure CHD2
• Colon Cancer Alliance for Research & Education for Lynch Syndrome (CCARE Lynch Syndrome)
• Colon Cancer Coalition
• Columbia University Irving Medical Center
• COMBINEDBrain, Inc.
• Corewell Health System
• CSNK2A1 Foundation
• Cure CMD
• Cure GABA-A
• Cure GM1 Foundation
• Cure Sanfilippo Foundation
• Cure VCP Disease
• CureGRIN Foundation
• Cystic Fibrosis Foundation
• DCM Foundation
• Denver Health & Hospital Authority
• DMC University Laboratories
• Down Syndrome Association of Central Ohio
• Dup15q Alliance
• Elevate DD
• Emory School of Medicine
• Epilepsy Foundation of America
• EveryLife Foundation for Rare Diseases
• Exact Sciences
• Exceptional Lives, Inc.
• Family Connection of South Carolina
• Family Heart Foundation
• Fight Colorectal Cancer
• Flok Health
• Florida Association of Genetic Counselors (FLAGC)
• FOD (Fatty Oxidation Disorders) Family Support Group
• FORCE: Facing Our Risk of Cancer Empowered
• Foundation for Angelman Syndrome Therapeutics
• Frederick Health
• GABA-A Alliance
• GeneDx, Inc.
• Genetic Support Foundation
• Genome Creative, LLC
• Genome Medical
• Georgia Center for Oncology Research and Education (CORE)
• GeriatRx
• Global Genes: Allies in Rare Disease
• Good Samaritian Hospital; Catholic Health
• Greenwood Genetic Center
• Grey Genetics
• Hannah's Hope Fund for GAN
• Hawaii Society of Clinical Oncology
• HCU Network America
• HD Genetics
• HealthyGene
• Helix, Inc.
• Hereditary Neuropathy Foundation
• Human Genetics Association of New Jersey
• Immune Deficiency Foundation
• Indiana Oncology Society
• International Cancer Advocacy Network (ICAN)
• International Foundation for CDKL5 Research
• Invision Sally Jobe/Radiology Imaging Associates
• Iowa Oncology Society
• IVI RMA America
• Jacobs School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, University at Buffalo
• Johns Hopkins Medicine
• JScreen
• Kaiona Counseling
• KCNQ2 Cure Alliance
• Kennedy Krieger Institute
• Labcorp
• Les Turner ALS Foundation
• Li Fraumeni Syndrome LFSA Association
• Lipodystrophy United
• Long Island University Post Genetic Counseling Graduate Program
• M-CM Network
• Mass General Brigham
• Massachusetts General Hospital Institute of Health Professions, Genetic Counseling Program
• Medical Oncology Association of Southern California (MOASC)
• Metis Genetics
• Middlesex Health Cancer Center
• Mirvie, Inc.
• Mississippi Metabolics Foundation
• MKGenetix
• Monica Weldon Consulting, LLC
• Montana State Oncology Society
• Muscular Dystrophy Association
• My Gene Counsel
• MyOme
• MyOme
• Myriad Genetics, Inc.
• Natera, Inc
• National Ataxia Foundation
• National Comprehensive Cancer Network
• National Down Syndrome Society
• National Organization for Rare Disorders
• NBIA Disorders Association
• NERGG, Inc. (New England Regional Genetics Group)
• Nest Genomics
• New England Cancer Specialists
• No Stomach For Cancer
• North Carolina Medical Genetics Association
• Northern New England Clinical Oncology Society
• Northwestern University Graduate Program in Genetic Counseling
• NW Rare Disease Coalition
• Ochsner Health
• Ohio Association of Genetic Counselors
• Ovarian Cancer Research Alliance
• Ovum Health
• Parent Project Muscular Dystrophy (PPMD)
• Parents and Researchers Interested in Smith-Magenis Syndrome (PRISMS)
• Parkinson's Foundation
• Pathways for Rare and Orphan Solutions
• Penn Medicine Basser Center
• Penn State Health
• Pennsylvania Society of Oncology and Hematology
• Personalized Medicine Coalition
• Prader-Willi Syndrome Association (PWSA|USA)
• Project Alive
• Propionic Acidemia Foundation
• PTEN Hamartoma Tumor Syndrome Foundation
• PXE International/Genetic Allliance
• Quest Diagnostics
• Rady Children's Health- San Diego
• RARE-X
• Relevant Genetics, LLC
• Remember The Girls
• Rocket Pharma
• Saint Louis University School of Medicine
• Sarah Lawerence College
• SATB2 Gene Foundation
• Sharsheret, Inc.; The Jewish Breast & Ovarian Cancer Community
• Southeastern Regional Genetics Group (SERGG)
• Southern California Genetic Counselors (SCGC)
• STXBP1 Foundation
• Sudden Arrhythmia Death Syndromes (SADS) Foundation
• Susan G. Komen
• Sutter Health
• The Association for Frontotemporal Degeneration (AFTD)
• The Collaborative Group of the Americas on Inherited Gastrointestinal Cancer (CGA-IGC)
• The Global Foundation for Peroxisomal Disorders
• The John Ritter Foundation for Aortic Health
• The Michael J Fox Foundation for Parkinson's Research
• The Ohio State University Genetic Counseling Graduate Program
• The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center
• The RUNX1 Research Program
• TSC Alliance
• United Leukodystrophy Foundation
• United MSD Foundation
• UnityPoint Health
• University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences Genetic Counseling Graduate Program
• University of California San Francisco (UCSF Health)
• University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus
• University of Maryland Master's in Genetic Counseling Program
• University of Maryland School of Medicine
• University of Mississippi Medical Center Department of Pediatrics
• University of Pittsburgh Medical Center (UPMC) Hillman Cancer Center
• University of South Carolina Genetic Counseling Program
• University of South Florida
• University of Vermont Health Network
• USC Norris Comprehensive Cancer Center
• Usher 1F Collaborative
• UT Health | The University of Texas Health Center at Houston
• Vanderbilt University Medical Center
• Virginia Chapter of the American College of Cardiology
• Virginia Oncology Associates
• Watershed DNA
• Wentworth-Douglass Hospital
• Xavier University of Louisiana
• xCures