Labour MP preparing private member’s bill ending financial discrimination against cancer survivors

Maria’s dream to open her business is shackled by her medical history after the bank raised her risk profile for having suffered from cancer as a child. 

Little does it matter that Maria, who is now 35 years old, was cured and has been cancer-free for 24 years. 

Her story is not unique. Cancer survivors speak of exorbitant life insurance costs when trying to take out home loans because they are deemed to be medically high risk. An additional loading on the insurance premium of 150% seems to be standard fair. 

Now, Labour MP Amanda Spiteri Grech wants to introduce legislation that puts an end to what she insists is a discriminatory practice. 

“The loading on the insurance premium should not be applied if the person has been cured from cancer and years have passed without relapse,” she says. 

She is determined to put forward a private member’s bill in parliament that introduces “the right to be forgetten” for cancer survivors.  

And it’s not just about addressing the difficulty to access finance, she argues. “I want this right to cover employment as well so that in those jobs that require a medical test, the individual will have no obligation to disclose a cancer diagnosis they were cured from many years prior,” she says. 

Spiteri Grech is suggesting that a person who had cancer at 21 and over will be under no obligation to declare they had a cancer diagnosis after 10 years from the end of treatment. The period will be reduced to five years from the end of treatment for those who had the disease when they were under 21.  

Spiteri Grech added: “After passing through the physical and emotional ordeal of battling cancer, being cured from it and not relapsing for years, why should someone continue to shoulder the burden as they move forward in life?” 

The initiative has its supporters elsewhere in Europe where lobbying has resulted in legislation similar to the one being proposed by the Labour MP. 

At least six EU member states have taken legal measures to counter financial discrimination against cancer survivors, including France, Belgium and Italy. 

Françoise Meunier, a medical doctor and former Director-General of the European Organisation for Research and Treatment of Cancer (EORTC), created the European Initiative on Ending Discrimination against Cancer Survivors. 

She set up the initiative after witnessing the hardship her former patients still faced after battling cancer as they tried to move on in life. 

Meunier has been advocating for change, demanding political action to protect cancer survivors from financial discrimination throughout Europe. 

There is no common blueprint for legislation across the member states that have introduced the right to be forgotten for cancer survivors. 

According to the provisions in France, the Netherlands and Portugal, adults whose cancer diagnosis occurred before the age of 21 years would be forgotten five years after the end of treatment. In Luxembourg and Romania the age is set at 18. The period is longer if the cancer was diagnosed at a later stage in life. Other provisions could also be in place and in some instances the laws also cover other diseases than cancer such as Hepatitis C. 

According to Meunier, the common point remains the same: To protect cancer survivors against financial discrimination, after a specific period of time has passed. 

Spiteri Grech will be holding a discussion on her proposal on 10 September at the Justice Ministry during which she will launch a public consultation to receive feedback. 

“I have been talking to stakeholders, including insurance companies, and I want to continue listening to cancer survivors and others who may have an interest in the initiative,” she says. 

Anybody wishing to send feedback can do so on her official email address: [email protected].