Sen. Dziedzic: Wigs for cancer patients should be covered by insurance

Shortly after she began chemotherapy for ovarian cancer a year ago, Sen. Kari Dziedzic's hair fell out suddenly in clumps one morning. She pulled what remained into a low ponytail and headed to the Capitol where she was leader of the 34-member Senate majority caucus.

After work that day, she shaved the remnants of her dark hair and bought a wig for $500 out of pocket because it wasn't covered by insurance. Dziedzic said insurers cover wigs for those suffering hair loss due to alopecia, but not for cancer.

"I've learned a lot in this health care journey of the hurdles people have to go through," the Minneapolis DFLer said in an interview Tuesday. "I've had the time and capacity to go through and deal with it but most people don't."

As she continues her treatment for cancer, Dziedzic is looking to ease the way for others. First up Thursday is her bill to require insurers to pay up to $1,000 for wigs for cancer-related hair loss. The Senate Commerce and Consumer Protection Committee will give it a hearing at 12:30 p.m. with Dziedzic participating remotely from a corner in her doctor's office with shaky wifi. The bill has multiple bipartisan co-sponsors.

Dziedzic said hair loss is a jarring cancer milestone. "It's a cold slap in the face. It's all of the sudden, hmmm, I look like a cancer patient," Dziedzic said.

She was diagnosed with cancer shortly after the DFL took control of the Legislature and Dziedzic was elected majority leader of the Senate caucus, which launched a session that included a torrent of progressive bills from abortion protections, free meals for school children, restoration of voting rights for felons and new gun safety regulations.

Dziedzic kept the caucus together while working remotely through a hysterectomy and the removal of her spleen and appendix. As she received chemotherapy, she worked from home, returning to the Capitol in person for the final weeks.

Her recovery went well. In November, her check-in screenings came back clear with no sign of cancer. The results in late January were different; the cancer had returned in multiple places.

Facing daily radiation, more chemotherapy and the uncertainty of how her body would react, Dziedzic resigned from her leadership post less than two weeks before the start of 2024 legislative session. "It was a really, really hard decision," Dziedzic said.

Known for her relentless work ethic, Dziedzic is using her expanded knowledge of the health care system to help future cancer patients.

"I want to make sure that others who don't have the resources can get a wig," she said. "Research shows that losing hair related to cancer has a negative impact on quality of life. Loss of self esteem. Do you wear a cap, do you wear a scarf, what do you do?"

Even with a wig, Dziedzic's had to improvise. Despite multiple warnings that the wig would melt if it got too hot, she grabbed an egg bake from the oven on Mother's Day last year and the steam caused her wig to frizz out.

Because she was returning to the Senate the following day, she headed to the only open wig shop she could find open on a Sunday. "I took my mom for a road trip to Hastings for a wig and ice cream because I didn't want to look like a puffball," Dziedzic said.

Then there were the summer parades under the hot sunlight. Dziedzic knew the wig would be extremely uncomfortable so she bought a baseball cap online with a built-in ponytail. That did the job, although she said the hat didn't look as good in person as it did in the online photos.

Those were minor details compared to the unexpected $6,000 bill for genetic testing. The outcome would determine the course of treatment and she said she had received pre-authorization for the test but still received the bill.

"I had the capacity to read the bill and the plan and then argue with them. A lot of people can't do that," Dziedzic said. "It's kind of my mission: How do you make it easier for patients to not have to go through these multiple hurdles?"

She's trying to knock down barriers on multiple fronts, talking to members of Congress about many federal issues. "No one wants chemo or radiation. It's not a selective, elective procedure," Dziedzic said.

She's finished her latest round of radiation and begins more chemotherapy soon so she'll continue to work remotely with the aim of returning to the Capitol.

"I'm still pretty susceptible to crowds and germs, but my goal is to come back," Dziedzic said.