More Funding Needed For Breast, Cervical Cancer Detection Program, Advocates Say

Main Category: Breast Cancer
Also Included In: Cervical Cancer / HPV Vaccine
Article Date: 29 Jul 2010 - 3:00 PDT

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During an event to mark its 20th anniversary, advocates of the National Breast and Cervical Cancer Early Detection Program on Tuesday expressed frustration that the program has not been extended to more low-income women and urged Congress to increase funding, CQ HealthBeat reports. The program, administered by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, provides cancer screenings to low-income and uninsured women, particularly racial and ethnic minorities.

According to Marcus Plescia, director of the National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion in CDC's Division of Cancer Preventions and Control, more than 8.8 million cancer screenings have been provided since the program's inception, leading to the detection of 42,000 breast cancer cases. Breast cancer is the second-leading cause of cancer death among women, and screening can reduce mortality rates, CQ HealthBeat reports.

The program "clearly had a significant impact and touched the lives of many women in our nation," Plescia said. However, only one in five women eligible for the program is screened, "a figure that's remained constant in recent years," CQ HealthBeat reports. Advocates say that it is difficult to enroll more women in the program because standards for screening and subsequent treatment coverage through Medicaid vary from state to state.

American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network President Christopher Hansen said that advocates are requesting $255 million in funding for the program in fiscal year 2011, compared with $215 million requested in FY 2010 and $205 million in FY 2009.

In remarks at the event, Hansen said that even after the heath reform law (PL 111-148) is fully implemented in 2014, "there's still going to be uninsured women in 2014 and beyond who are going to need mammograms and Pap tests, and this program is a lifeline for them in being able to do that." He added that more than 220,000 women will be diagnosed with breast and cervical cancer in 2010 (Norman, CQ HealthBeat, 7/27).

Reprinted with kind permission from http://www.nationalpartnership.org. You can view the entire Daily Women's Health Policy Report, search the archives, or sign up for email delivery here. The Daily Women's Health Policy Report is a free service of the National Partnership for Women & Families.

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