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House passes bill to require private insurers to cover supplemental screening for high‑risk breast cancer patients
Summary
The Idaho House on Feb. 20 passed House Bill 134, a measure to require health plans other than Medicaid and self‑insured plans to cover supplemental breast cancer screening (MRI, ultrasound, contrast mammography) for people clinically determined to be at high lifetime risk. The bill passed 62–6 with 2 excused.
The Idaho House of Representatives passed House Bill 134 on Feb. 20, requiring health insurance plans sold in the state (excluding Medicaid and self‑insured employer plans) to cover supplemental breast cancer screening for people identified as high risk.
Supporters said the coverage is for patients with a clinically determined elevated risk — for example, people with BRCA mutations, a qualifying family history, or a lifetime risk score above 20% — and argued early detection lowers treatment costs and saves lives.
Representative, District 18 (sponsor) opened debate by describing her own recent breast cancer diagnosis and saying enhanced screening (contrast mammography, MRI) had detected a second cancer at a curable stage. She said some high‑risk Idaho patients forgo recommended imaging because of cost and that Idaho ranks last in the U.S. on screening rates, testimony she said supports insurance coverage for the small subset of people who need supplemental exams.
Representative, District 15 (member) provided cost comparisons on the House floor: she said a bilateral mastectomy can cost about $8,644 (figure cited on the floor as an average for the surgical procedure alone), an MRI about $600 to $1,800, and advanced treatment for later‑stage disease can range in the tens to hundreds of thousands of dollars. Representative District 18 (sponsor) also described her own care costs, saying a mastectomy and subsequent chemo and radiation had cost well into the tens or hundreds of thousands of dollars in her case.
Other lawmakers who spoke on the floor gave personal or constituent accounts of delayed detection in people with dense breast tissue or who lacked access to enhanced imaging. Multiple members framed the bill as fiscally conservative because they expect early detection to reduce later treatment costs.
After debate, the House closed debate and the clerk recorded the vote. The House reported the vote as 62 ayes, 6 nays, 2 excused; the bill passed and the title was approved for transmittal to the Senate.
Votes and procedural details recorded on the floor show the bill advanced without a title correction and was sent to the Senate for consideration.
The House discussion included several personal testimonies and cost figures cited on the floor; sponsors and supporters emphasized the change applies only to the subset of patients defined in the bill as clinically high risk and does not expand routine coverage for all mammography.
House Bill 134 will be considered next by the Idaho Senate; floor records do not specify an effective date.
