Sec. 311. Report by the Comptroller General
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The Comptroller General of the United States shall conduct a review and submit recommendations to Congress on existing barriers to obtaining and paying for adequate medical care for survivors of childhood cancer. In carrying out the review and formulating recommendations under subsection (a), the Comptroller General shall— identify existing barriers to the availability of complete and coordinated survivorship care for survivors of childhood cancer and to the availability of expert pediatric palliative care, including consideration of— understanding and education among patients, health care providers, regulators, and third-party payors; adequacy of payment codes to cover necessary survivorship services; access to necessary medical and other services for such survivors, including the services described in subsection (c); and lack of pediatric palliative care and hospice services for patients approaching the end of life; and make recommendations to provide improved access and payment plans for childhood cancer survivorship programs and palliative care, including psychosocial services and coverage of such services.
The services described in this subsection are the following: Coordinated multidisciplinary long-term follow-up care with access to appropriate pediatric subspecialists and adult subspecialists with specific expertise in survivorship, including subspecialists with expertise in oncology, radiation oncology, surgery, cardiology, psychiatry or psychology, endocrinology, pulmonology, nephrology, dermatology, gynecology, and urology. Appropriate organ function testing (particularly screening for potential problems at much younger ages than usually indicated in the general population) and treatment, including— neuropsychological testing and mental health services; fertility testing and treatment; evaluation and treatment for endocrine disorders including growth hormone and testosterone replacement; diagnostic imaging to screen for late effects of treatment (including second cancers), such as mammograms and magnetic resonance imaging testing to screen for possible breast cancer; screening for cardiac problems, such as echocardiograms; screening for osteoporosis with bone densitometry, including duel x-ray absorptiometry; dental coverage and necessary dental implants; hearing aids; and screening for lung problems, such as pulmonary function testing.