April 21st, 2008

Senator Mike Brubaker, R-Lancaster, was recently diagnosed with prostate cancer. With a family history of the disease, the Senator was aware of his increased risk and was tested fr PSAs – prostate-specific antigens – when he turned 50, the earliest his insurance would pay for it.

Sen. Brubaker is glad he was diagnosed early, the Lancaster Intelligencer-Journal reports, but he’s asking why insurers won’t pay for the test earlier for those with family history of the disease. “I’m hearing a lot of stories, and that’s making me think maybe we need to analyze that magic number of 50. Everyone in the health care industry agrees that early diagnosis is key to increasing survival,” says Brubaker.