News & Updates

AONN+ Board Member Andrea (Andi) Dwyer helped lead a three-year collaboration with the CDC and policymakers that resulted in new ICD-10 codes for Lynch Syndrome, BRCA1, BRCA2, and Li-Fraumeni Syndrome, improving coverage and access to genetic testing and diagnostic services for patients.

AONN+ encourages oncology navigators to complete a brief Commission on Cancer survey that will help shape future navigation program development, identify emerging trends, and strengthen support for the oncology navigation community.

AONN+ Midyear 2026 brought the oncology navigation community together for four days of connection, innovation, and practical insights that are shaping the future of patient care.

Sharon Gentry, MSN, RN, HON-ONN-CG, AOCN, recently traveled to Philadelphia to represent AONN+ at the Access USA Conference, specifically for Patient Assistance & Access Programs. Here, she took part in the highly popular panel, “The Medicare Patient Experience: Affordability, Access, and the State of Healthcare Today,” which focused on financial burdens that patients with chronic illnesses face and why the work to improve access is far from finished. 

Gainesville, Fla. (June 1, 2025) – The Academy of Oncology Nurse & Patient Navigators (AONN+) is proud to announce the launch of a groundbreaking grant program in partnership with Gilead Sciences aimed at advancing the field of oncology navigation and enhancing patient outcomes within the healthcare setting. This initiative is designed to support the creation, enhancement, and expansion of innovative tools that optimize efficiency and elevate the critical role of oncology navigators.

Gainesville, Fla. (May 22, 2025) – The Academy of Oncology Nurse & Patient Navigators (AONN+) is pleased to announce that long-time member, and seasoned healthcare executive Rani Khetarpal, MBA, has been announced as President of its Board of Trustees for a term that will run through 2027.

April 3, 2025 – The undersigned cancer organizations, which represent people with cancer; cancer health care professionals; researchers; and caregivers, families and friends of those with cancer, issued the following statement in response to the mass reductions in force at the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and the reorganization of the department.

In recent years, patients with chronic conditions, including cancer, have faced harmful "copay diversion programs" such as copay accumulators and maximizers. These programs prevent copay assistance payments from counting toward a patient's annual deductible and out-of-pocket maximums. Once the assistance runs out, patients are left with hundreds or thousands of out-of-pocket costs, even though they should have already reached their yearly maximum.

Washington, DC, February 25, 2025 – The House of Representatives will this week consider a budget resolution that instructs the House Energy and Commerce Committee to reduce spending by $880 billion. Most of those cuts are expected to come from Medicaid.