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Financial assistance

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For many people undergoing treatment for breast cancer, paying for care can be a major cause of stress. Every treatment, doctor’s appointment, hospital stay, and procedure adds up, even if you have good health insurance coverage — and if you don’t have insurance, or your insurance doesn’t cover much, paying medical and everyday bills can sometimes seem impossible.

Being in treatment can mean it’s hard to cover the cost of:

Medical bills, including copays and out-of-pocket costs
Medicine
Medical supplies
Rent or mortgage
Groceries or other necessities

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Living Beyond Breast Cancer Fund

The Living Beyond Breast Cancer Fund provides one-time grants to help ease the financial burden of breast cancer. These grants are distributed to help people in active treatment for early-stage breast cancer or living with metastatic breast cancer pay vital expenses such as rent, utility bills, car payments, and car insurance. Grant amounts range from $500 - $1,000 depending on need.

In order to best serve the national breast cancer community, Living Beyond Breast Cancer Fund grants are awarded to people in the greatest need of financial support — those in active treatment for early-stage breast cancer or living with metastatic breast cancer and currently experiencing financial hardship because of the cost of cancer care. If you need financial support, please visit the Living Beyond Breast Cancer Fund page and apply. A healthcare provider will also need to verify your diagnosis.

To be eligible, you:

Must be in active treatment for early-stage breast cancer or living with metastatic breast cancer.
Must be experiencing financial need due to the cost of cancer care.
Must live in one of the 50 United States or the District of Columbia

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My family and I are very grateful for LBBC's grant program. A cancer diagnosis is stressful as-is. No one should also have to be concerned with not meeting their basic needs due to financial insecurity during treatment. The grant has allowed us to focus on the most important tasks at hand."

LBBC Fund Recipient

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To learn more about the grant, visit the Living Beyond Breast Cancer Fund page.

To learn how you can support the fund to provide grants to others who need it, see our page on Supporting the Fund.

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Who to contact for financial assistance

If you need financial support, your cancer center likely has a number of people available to help you find programs and services. People who can help are:

Doctors and nurses on your care team
Social workers and nurse navigators at your cancer center
Hospital discharge planners
Patient services offices at your cancer center or hospital
Financial assistance offices as your hospital

Outside of your cancer center or hospital, you can speak with:

Financial planners
State insurance agencies
Your health insurance company
Government assistance offices

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Organizations offering grants & other financial assistance

We can provide financial assistance for everyday necessities such as rent and utilities, but the financial burden of breast cancer goes beyond these basic needs. Below is a list of other organizations that offer additional financial assistance for people with cancer.

American Breast Cancer Foundation Breast Cancer Assistance Program
(844) 219-2223
The ABCF National Breast Cancer Assistance Program helps uninsured or underinsured people gain access to diagnostic tests and screenings, regardless of age, race, or gender.

Bringing Hope Home
(484) 580-8395
Bringing Hope Home gives financial and emotional support to families facing cancer. Through its Light of Hope Family Grant Program, the organization offers a one-time grant to pay essential household bills for families affected by cancer in the Greater Philadelphia Area.

CancerCare
(800) 813-4673 (800-813-HOPE)
CancerCare offers counseling, case management, financial assistance, support groups, educational programs, and publications for anyone living with cancer. Oncology social workers and cancer experts provide CancerCare services.

Family Reach Financial Treatment Program
(857) 233-2764 (Boston, MA)
(973) 394-1411 (Parsippany, NJ)
Family Reach’s Financial Treatment Program offers financial help to people diagnosed with cancer based on their individual situations. The program is open to people who are U.S. citizens in active cancer treatment or within 1 year of completing treatment.

Forward4Tobi
(847) 894-6650
The Forward4Tobi Foundation helps people with breast cancer and their families pay for medical, childcare, or other daily expenses. Forward4Tobi currently works with two medical centers in the United States: NorthShore University Health Systems in Evanston, IL and Dana-Farber Cancer Institute in Boston, MA.

HealthWell Foundation
(800) 675-8416
The HealthWell Foundation provides financial help with treatment-related costs, including the cost of supplies, medicine, surgeries, and travel.

Infinite Strength
(203) 812-0549
Infinite Strength provides six months of financial support to underrepresented/underserved single mothers living with Metastatic Breast Cancer (Stage IV) in order for them to have a better quality of life. Qualified applicants must be single mothers who have children under the age of 18 living with them (whom they are financially responsible for) and they must be 200% of the federal poverty level.

National Cancer Assistance Foundation
(866) 413-5789
The National Cancer Assistance Foundation provides a Breast Cancer Assistance Fund for women diagnosed with breast cancer and in need of emotional or financial support.

PAN Foundation
(866) 316-7263 (866-316-PANF)
PAN (Patient Access Network) Foundation offers financial assistance to people who cannot afford treatment-related out-of-pocket costs. People who need assistance can complete an online application to learn more about eligibility and available funds.

Partners in Care
(888) 850-1622
Partners in Care provides people within 6 months of a cancer diagnosis financial assistance for incidental expenses including temporary lodging, transportation, medical supplies, groceries, and screenings. Assistance is available for people receiving treatment in Alabama, Arizona, California, Florida, Indiana, Kentucky, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, North Carolina, New Jersey, Nevada, New York, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Washington state, and West Virginia.

Patient Advocate Foundation
(866) 532-5274
The Patient Advocate Foundation’s Co-Pay Relief Program helps insured people with cancer afford their out-of-pocket expenses for prescriptions and treatments. PAF pays co-pays, co-insurance, and deductibles for eligible patients.

The Pink Fund
(877) 234-7465 (877-234-PINK)
The Pink Fund gives short-term financial aid to people with breast cancer who are in active treatment. The Pink Fund makes direct bill payments for health insurance premiums and non-medical bill payments such as mortgage or rent, utilities, car payments, and car insurance.

RemediChain
(833) 999-1003
RemediChain can legally accept chemotherapy and some specialty medications for donation that are foil sealed, unexpired, and in manufacturer packaging. RemediChain can then donate the medications to patients in need at no cost to them.

For more information and organizations, visit our Breast cancer resources and support page.

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Government assistance programs

Another way to access financial support after a breast cancer diagnosis is through government programs. Visit our page on Work Accommodations and Disability Benefits to learn about federal and state financial assistance programs, such as:

Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI)
Supplemental Security Income (SSI)
State Disability Insurance
COBRA

You can also read about Medicare and Medicaid, two federal insurance programs, on our page on Private, State, and Federal Insurance.

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About LBBC

Reviewed and updated: April 7, 2022

Reviewed by: LBBC Staff

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Living Beyond Breast Cancer is a national nonprofit organization that seeks to create a world that understands there is more than one way to have breast cancer. To fulfill its mission of providing trusted information and a community of support to those impacted by the disease, Living Beyond Breast Cancer offers on-demand emotional, practical, and evidence-based content. For over 30 years, the organization has remained committed to creating a culture of acceptance — where sharing the diversity of the lived experience of breast cancer fosters self-advocacy and hope. For more information, learn more about our programs and services.