Retired gastroenterologist Samuel Pace, MD, is spending his retirement lobbying legislators to expand Medicare's colorectal cancer coverage, Starkville Daily News reports.
Here's what you should know.
1. Dr. Pace and Oxford-based University of Mississippi Professor and Associate Director of Cancer Education Roy Duhé, PhD, went to Washington D.C., to speak to legislators and help spread their message.
2. The duo is advocating for expanded Medicare coverage to cover the cost of removing polyps.
3. Medicare currently covers colorectal cancer screenings, but not polyp removal.
4. Dr. Pace is also an active member of 70x2020, a state initiative aimed at increasing colorectal cancer screening rates across Mississippi to 70 percent of the population by 2020.
Editor's note: This article was updated on March 30.