Thank you for contacting the Bob Perks Cancer Assistance Fund. This information may help you decide whether or not to apply for assistance.

The Fund has been established to assist individuals or families with personal illness that has been diagnosed as cancer.

Our goal is to provide basic necessities that patients cannot afford temporarily due to their illness.  

You may be eligible for assistance through the Bob Perks Cancer Assistance Fund if you meet the following criteria;

• household income has decreased due to a cancer diagnosis in the family OR household expenses have increased due to a cancer diagnosis in the family
• applicant resides in Centre, Blair , Clearfield or Huntingdon counties
• application is submitted by a healthcare professional - see application process below
  
  

Please note:  the American Cancer Society offers financial assistance.  Please contact ACS at 888-227-5445 to talk about mileage reimbursement and other covered expenses.

BPCAF Application for Assistance (revised 11-20-09)

Limitations to the coverage are subject to change based on availability of funds.  Always use the most up to date application and check for any changes in coverage area or coverage limitations.

Application Process
A request for assistance (see application above) should be submitted to the Bob Perks Cancer Assistance Fund by a physician, nurse, or other health care professional i.e. social worker, Penn State Cancer Institute staff member or other social service agency employee.  Patients and/or family members may not submit an application directly to the fund for consideration.  All contacts regarding a pending application MUST be made through the referring source.  Failure to comply with this regulation may result in denial of your application. 

Mail the application, patient’s/family’s signed release and bill(s) (if applicable) to:
The Bob Perks Cancer Assistance Fund
P.O. Box 313
State College, PA 16804
Please do not submit your request via fax.

The Allocations Committee DOES NOT meet on a regular schedule; therefore, we encourage you to submit your request one month in advance.

Covered Expenses/Types of Assistance

• Payments for household bills (i.e. utilities, rent, car payments or repairs,...)
     Copies of all bills to be paid MUST accompany the application

• Gift cards for groceries (Giant or Weis), gas, etc
• Out of town lodging required for medical care

    Under no circumstances will checks be issued directly to an individual applicant.  Payments will only be made directly to creditors, landlords, utility companies, financial institutions, etc.

Limitations
Requests for assistance may not exceed $1000.00. Once a request is granted, the individual will not be eligible to submit another request for at least three (3) months.

The BPCAF does not cover the following expenses

• medical bills
• mortgages
• property taxes