Patient Advocate Foundation Significantly Expands Colorectal Care Line

Colorectal Care Line Will Assist an Additional 7,200 Colorectal Cancer Patients Each Year Contacting PAF for Access to Care, Financial Assistance

HAMPTON, Va., Sept. 14 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The Patient Advocate Foundation (PAF) – a national non-profit resolving patient access to health care issues, medical financial limitations, insurance denials and multiple government program enrollments, including Medicaid and Social Security Disability Income – announced today a significant expansion of its Colorectal Care Line (CCL), beginning September 13, 2010. According to PAF's 2009 Patient Data and Analysis Report (PDAR), colorectal cancer accounted for nearly 25 percent of the cancer diagnosis groups handled by the Foundation last year. The CCL expansion will assist the growing numbers of colorectal cancer patients contacting PAF for access to care support, debt relief and financial assistance – and through the new CCL expansion, PAF will be able to serve an additional 7,200 colorectal patients each year.

"As colorectal cancer is now the third most commonly diagnosed cancer in the United States, with the American Cancer Society estimating nearly 150,000 new cases to be diagnosed this year, it is of utmost importance to PAF to maintain and expand upon our capabilities in helping colon cancer patients who are in need," said Nancy Davenport-Ennis, Founder and CEO of PAF. "We are extremely grateful to our generous program supporters in collaborating on this important CCL expansion, which will help us continue to provide all patients with complete medical, financial and emotional support as they battle against colon cancer."

The CCL is a division of PAF's MedCare Line, which is staffed by a team of nurses and professional case managers who provide individualized clinical case management services at no charge to patients in need. The CCL assists patients who have been diagnosed with colorectal cancer and are seeking treatment education and access to care by helping patients interpret  insurance policies, launch successful appeals for treatment denials, assist with accessing available state, local and national resources, providing educational resources and researching clinical trials.

PAF's MedCare Program case managers are available Monday through Thursday from 8:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. EDT and 8:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. EDT on Friday. Patients and physicians can contact the PAF MedCare Program toll free at 1-866-657-8634 to initiate a request for assistance. An online form for submitting patient information is also available from the dedicated PAF website via www.colorectalcareline.org.

Operational funding for PAF is provided by national non-profit patient organizations, foundation grants, federal Centers for Disease Control grants, Congressional appropriations, Virginia state government appropriations, national partnerships with other patient assistance organizations, corporate donors, community fundraising events, data sales and individual donations. For more information about PAF, please visit www.patientadvocate.org or call toll-free (800) 532-5274. 

Mission: Patient Advocate Foundation is a national non-profit organization that seeks to safeguard patients through effective mediation assuring access to care, maintenance of employment and preservation of their financial stability.

SOURCE Patient Advocate Foundation