PRESIDENT CLINTON AND FIRST LADY HILLARY RODHAM CLINTON PROMOTE SCREENINGS
AND TREATMENT FOR BREAST, CERVICAL AND OTHER CANCERS
Highlights the Administration?s Strong Record on Women and Children?s
Health
January 4, 2001
Today, President Clinton and First Lady Hillary Rodham Clinton will join
advocates for women and families in a White House ceremony celebrating the
enactment of the Breast and Cervical Cancer Act of 2000. The President
will announce that the Health Care Financing Administration (HCFA) is
releasing new guidance today to all 50 states advising them of how they can
provide this important new health insurance option for thousands of
low-income, uninsured women with breast cancer. President Clinton also
will release an executive memorandum directing all Federal agencies to make
at least four hours of leave available each year for employees to receive
important health screenings for cancer and other preventable diseases. In
addition, First Lady Hillary Rodham Clinton will highlight the recently
enacted Children?s Health Act of 2000, which promotes research on
children?s health issues, as the latest step in the Administration?s strong
record on women and children?s health.
TREATMENT OPTIONS FOR LOW-INCOME UNINSURED WOMEN DIAGNOSED WITH BREAST OR
CERVICAL CANCER ARE LIMITED. The National Breast and Cervical Cancer Early
Detection Program provides breast and cervical cancer screening to over
360,000 women without access to these services annually. Although Federal
government-sponsored screening programs make every effort to assist
individuals diagnosed with disease to access treatment, thousands of women
still face financial barriers to care, and those that receive some help
frequently do not receive comprehensive coverage for services they need.
PRESIDENT CLINTON ENCOURAGES STATES TO PROVIDE NEW INSURANCE OPTION FOR
VULNERABLE WOMEN WITH BREAST AND CERVICAL CANCER. Today, the President
will announce that HCFA is sending guidance to all 50 states encouraging
them to take advantage of the Breast and Cervical Cancer Act of 2000. This
new option, which costs $995 million over 10 years and was originally
included in the President?s FY 2001 Budget, will allow states to provide
women diagnosed with cancer through the National Breast and Cervical Cancer
Early Detection Program with access to insurance that covers critical
treatment services. The guidance being issued today will clarify that the
new law will:
? Provide immediate, comprehensive health insurance to low-income,
uninsured women diagnosed with breast and cervical cancer. States have the
option to provide the full Medicaid benefit package, at an enhanced Federal
matching rate, to uninsured women diagnosed with breast or cervical cancer
through the National Breast and Cervical Cancer Early Detection Program.
The women will be eligible for this benefit throughout the duration of
their treatment, eliminating financial barriers to medical care for these
women. These women will be able to access critical health care services
necessary to treat their cancer, including radiation treatment,
chemotherapy, and other health care services, such as basic laboratory and
palliative care services, in order to provide a high quality standard of
care to these patients.
?
Allow women to access life saving treatment without delay. The guidance
will make clear that states also have the option to allow health care
providers and other qualified entities to provide critical health care
services to women pending official enrollment in Medicaid, increasing
the chances of survival for these women and allowing them to focus on
fighting these terrible diseases ? not about how they will pay for their
care.
? Result in increased state spending on breast and cervical cancer
screening programs. Some states currently supplement the Federal funds
they receive for breast and cervical cancer with their own funds for
diagnosis and treatment of these diseases. Estimates indicate that, under
similar proposals, states would redirect these funds to supplement their
investment in screening for breast and cervical cancer, resulting in a
substantial increase in the number of mammograms and pap smears provided.
UNDETECTED AND UNTREATED CANCER CONTINUE TO HARM AMERICANS. Despite recent
improvements in prevention and treatment, cancer remains the second leading
cause of death in the United States. For women age 50-69, regular
mammograms can reduce the chance of death from breast cancer by
approximately 30 percent. Even in women age 40-50, regular mammograms can
reduce mortality rates by approximately 17 percent. Because colorectal
cancers grow slowly, early detection significantly increases survival.
When detected early, the five-year survival rate is 90 percent. However,
less than 40 percent of colorectal cancers are discovered at that stage.
After the cancer has spread, the five-year survival rate drops to 65
percent. Preventive screenings and early detection, however, are not
effective if patients cannot afford the treatment. Women without health
insurance are 40 percent more likely to die from breast cancer than insured
women since they are likely to get needed care.
PRESIDENT CLINTON TAKES NEW EXECUTIVE ACTION TO EXPAND ACCESS TO PREVENTIVE
CARE FOR FEDERAL EMPLOYEES. Today, President Clinton will issue an
executive memorandum that ensures that all 1.8 million Federal employees
have access to leave benefits enabling them to access preventive
screenings. This executive memorandum, which is another contribution
towards the Administration?s success in making the Federal government a
model employer, will direct all Federal departments and agencies to:
? Ensure that all Federal employees have at least four hours of leave
available annually for preventive screenings. The President will direct
agencies to encourage employees to take advantage of screening programs and
other preventive health services through options like promoting alternative
work schedules; granting leave under the sick and annual leave programs;
and granting excused absence to employees to participate in
agency-sponsored preventive health activities. In addition, for employees
with fewer than two weeks of accrued sick leave, agencies will provide up
to four hours of excused absence each year, without loss of pay or charge
to leave, for participation in preventive health screenings.
? Develop and expand worksite health promotion and disease prevention
programs. Recognizing that the workplace is an effective place to provide
information on preventive health care, the President will ask Federal
agencies to develop or expand programs that help employees understand their
risks for disease, obtain preventive health services, and make healthy
lifestyle choices. Program information will be shared with the Office of
Personnel Management, which will promote best practices.
PRESIDENT CLINTON AND FIRST LADY HILLARY CLINTON HIGHLIGHT NEW INVESTMENT
IN RESEARCH AND TREATMENT FOR CHILDREN?S HEALTH. Today, the President and
First Lady will highlight the importance of the Children?s Health Act of
2000. This important legislation expand, and coordinates research,
prevention, and treatment activities for conditions having a significant
impact on children, including autism, diabetes, asthma, hearing loss,
epilepsy, traumatic brain injury, infant mortality, lead poisoning, and
oral health. The legislation: establishes eight Centers of Excellence to
promote research on the cause, diagnosis, early detection, prevention, and
treatment of autism; promotes training of pediatric specialists; authorizes
new research provisions, including a long-term child development study on
environmental influences on children?s health and a loan repayment program
at NIH for health professionals doing pediatric research; and authorizes
the Healthy Start program for the first time.
THE CLINTON-GORE ADMINISTRATION?S STRONG RECORD ON WOMEN?S HEALTH. The
Clinton-Gore Administration has a strong record on women and children?s
health issues. The Administration has worked tirelessly to improve women's
health, including ensuring the inclusion of women in clinical trials, more
than doubling funding for breast cancer research, expanding Medicare
coverage of mammograms, ending drive-through deliveries, and passing and
reauthorizing the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA). The Administration
also has taken strong steps to protect a woman?s right to choose and
promote women?s reproductive health by securing historic increases in
domestic and international family planning funding, providing contraceptive
coverage to more than a million women covered by federal health plans,
reversing the gag rule, and enacting the Freedom of Access to Clinic
Entrances Act (FACE).
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