Carson City — Assembly Bill 234 would place into Nevada statute the Medicaid coverage of evidence‑based cancer screenings for breast, cervical, lung, prostate and colorectal cancers, aligning state law with existing federal Affordable Care Act protections and current Medicaid practice.

Assemblywoman Nathana Anderson (Assembly District 30) told the Senate Health and Human Services Committee the bill’s intent is to ensure Medicaid beneficiaries have the same clearly stated statutory protections for recommended cancer screenings that insured Nevadans already have. “The intent ... was to protect access to cancer screenings for Nevada Medicaid beneficiaries and increase access to all evidence‑based colorectal cancer screening options,” Anderson said. She added that an initial effort to require coverage for at‑home DNA stool tests such as Cologuard generated a fiscal note, so the second reprint instead codifies current Medicaid practice and aligns statute with federal law.

Carrie Harrington, executive director of the Nevada Cancer Coalition, testified in support and said the change guarantees parity for Medicaid beneficiaries and may improve early detection and reduce late‑stage diagnoses. Several senators asked technical questions about the breadth of “screenings” included; testimony clarified the reprint preserves current Medicaid practice and that the removed at‑home DNA stool testing was the provision that triggered a fiscal impact.

There was no recorded opposition or neutral callers at the hearing. The committee closed the hearing and—along with AB514 and AB326—placed AB234 on a consent do‑pass motion that the committee approved unanimously.