People Over Profits

Graphic exposing corruption in the Health care industry

Insurance Companies and Their Executives Are Incentivized to Make Profits for Shareholders, Not Care for People

Insurance companies often deny claims and treatments, which often results in death. Around 22% of insurance claims are denied¹ and 80% of cancer patients who go bankrupt end up dying². The reason why insurance companies do this is to raise profits. By denying claims insurance company CEOs can insure that they will end up with a larger profit at the cost of the patient's health. ³. That's why the problem with cancer denials are so important, as it's a difficult problem to solve because it benefits the people who do it.

Our Mission

The goal of this project is to spread awareness of the issue with cancer treatment denials. It is essential that this problem is fixed, because, according to JAMA Network Open, 22% of cancer claims are denied, and since there was an estimated amount of 2,000,000 cancer cases in 2024, around 440,000 cancer claims ended up being denied. This project has been created to help other people understand the full seriousness of this issue. By spreading awareness, we hope that you will find interest in solving this problem. People who have dedicated themselves to supporting the protest against Cancer denials have made a huge impact as of today, and if you want to join them, we would greatly appreciate that. Even if it's just a small gesture, you can make a difference.

Take Action: We Need To Support Legislation That Regulates Insurance Companies So That They Cannot Deny Claims

If you want to solve this problem, a good way of doing it is spreading awareness. You can do this by selling merchandise, putting up advertisements, as well as planning protests. Whatever you plan on doing, even if it is small, it will make an impact. An example of taking action is Senator Wiener's SB 363. SB 363 provides transparency and accountability for health insurance companies for unreasonable denials of coverage for medically necessary care. Specifically, the bill fines insurance companies for excessive rates of healthcare denials being overturned on appeal, and requires insurance companies to show key data about their coverage denials. SB 363 prohibits insurance companies from denying claims without enough details to support the reason why they denied the claim.⁴ If you are a writer or fond of writing, you could write a book addressing the issue, and it would be a major help.

Sign the Petition

PNG graph of cancer treatments denied annually

The Amount of Cancer Claims Denied Annually

The amount of cancer claims that have been denied annually has been shocking. As of late, it is steadily rising, at a rate of almost 20,000 claims denied every year, as shown by this graph. In 2021, there was the introduction of COVID, which caused a massive jump which resulted in doubling the amount of annual cancer claims denied of the year before, which is why I made the decision of omitting the data from 2020. The years after that, however, were not as bad as they increased by 30,000 cancer claims denied annually at most. Although this may be true, it is hardly something to be satisfied about. If this trend continues, there will be about 630,000 cancer claims denied in 2035. In 2021, there were 1,777,000 cancer cases⁵, in 2022, there were 1,900,000 cancer cases⁶, in 2023, there were 1,950,000 cancer cases⁷, and in 2024, there were 2,000,000 cancer cases⁸

Voices from the Field

Doctors & Oncologists

“When treatment is delayed because of an insurer’s denial, we see outcomes worsen. The system must change.”
—Dr. Emily Rios, Oncology Chair, California Medical Association

Patient Advocates

“Insurers are quietly denying life-saving care—and people don’t realize it until it’s too late. SB 363 brings transparency to a broken process.”
—Maria Chen, Director, Patient Voices California

Health Regulators

“Oversight is not about overreach. It’s about enforcing promises insurers have already made to their members.”
—Former California Insurance Commissioner Dave Jones

Insurers (Counterpoint)

“We support access to timely care, but any new law must also protect against fraud and excessive costs that impact premiums for all.”
—Spokesperson, California Association of Health Plans

Research Across the Political Spectrum

Progressive Groups:
Public Citizen reports that denial rates for cancer treatment requests can exceed 15%, even when treatments are medically standard.
Families USA argues prior authorization reform is critical because it disproportionately harms vulnerable populations.

Conservative Groups:
The Cato Institute notes that opaque prior authorization processes distort market efficiency.
Libertarian economists support streamlined rules for terminal illness to enable faster care decisions.

How SB 363 Responds to Industry Concerns

Applies only to medically necessary treatments—defined by licensed providers.
Increases transparency, not blanket approvals.
Maintains insurer review authority with documented rationale.
Sets deadlines for decisions—not elimination of oversight.

SB 363 isn’t about removing safeguards—it’s about removing roadblocks.

People Over Profits. Stop Deny, Delay, Defend.