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| Call for Action |
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10/01/00 In summary, S. 662, the Breast and Cervical Cancer Treatment Act legislation would improve California's AND THE ENTIRE UNITED STATES’ ability to provide needed health care for low-income, uninsured patients diagnosed with breast and cervical cancers. In May of this year, the California State legislature approved AB 2878, and Governor Davis included $20 million in the state budget, to provide breast cancer treatment for low-income, uninsured women. This urgently needed new federal legislation would provide a federal financial match for some of those patients, which would allow California to redirect its investment to expand the program. Senator Jackie Speier has legislation ready for introduction in California if S. 662 passes to take full advantage of that federal match. Possible areas of expansion for the California program would include increasing the eligibility to low-income, uninsured women with any gynecological cancer (not just breast which is the state program, or breast and cervical which is the federal program), provide comprehensive care, not just cancer care (so patients getting treatment for their cancer don't have to worry about what would happen if another condition or injury occurs), increase eligibility for the working poor (up to 250% of the federal poverty level), and strengthen the financial accessibility of the program by keeping co-payments at a minimum. AN URGENT CALL TO ACTION The House of Representatives passed this bill 421-1 in May of this year. We have 75 Senate cosponsors -- three-fourths of the Senate! There is no reason for the Senate Leadership not to bring this bill quickly to the Senate floor for a vote before Congress takes its recess in a matter of days. WE NEED YOU TO ACT DECISIVELY AND IMMEDIATELY to contact the following Members in the Senate Leadership with this message:
Please call, e-mail and/or fax this message immediately to the following Senators: Senate Majority Leader Trent Lott (R-MS): telephone: (202) 224-3135; fax: 202-224-4639/2262; e-mail: senatorlott@lott.senate.gov Assistant Senate Majority Leader Don Nickles (R-OK): telephone: (202) 224-2708; fax: (202) 224-3913/6008; e-mail: senator@nickles.senate.gov Republican Conference Chairman, Senator Connie Mack (R-FL): telephone: (202) 224-5274; fax: (202) 224-8022; e-mail: connie@mack.senate.gov Senate Minority Leader Tom Daschle (D-SD): telephone: (202) 224-5556; fax: (202) 224-6603/7895; e-mail: tom_daschle@daschle.senate.gov Senate Assistant Minority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV): telephone: (202) 224-2158; fax: (202) 224-7327; e-mail: senator_reid@reid.senate.gov Please also urge your own Senators to go directly to Senator Lott and the other Senators outlined above and personally speak to them about bringing S. 662 to the floor immediately. Please feel free to contact WIN Against Breast Cancer with any questions regarding this important matter. Telephone: (626) 332-2255; fax: (626) 332-2585; e-mail: winabc@keyway.net. For full text, status and history of this legislation, please visit the following web address, at THOMAS World Wide Web System: http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/bdquery/z?d106:s.00662: S.662 Sponsor: Sen Chafee, John H. (introduced 3/18/1999) Related Bills: H.R.1070, H.R.4386 Latest Major Action: 6/27/2000 Placed on Senate Legislative Calendar under General Orders. Calendar No. 641. Title: A bill to amend title XIX of the Social Security Act to provide medical assistance for certain women screened and found to have breast or cervical cancer under a federally funded screening program. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- SENATE COSPONSORS (75), ALPHABETICAL
For more information on the California Breast Cancer Treatment Program and our ongoing efforts for a permanent Breast and Gynecological Cancer Treatment Fund, please visit www.treatmentnow.org. E-mail this page to the media, a friend or colleague. The following is a National Breast Cancer Coalition (of which WIN Against Breast Cancer is a member) media advisory for a press conference scheduled on 10/05/00: ------------------------------------------------------------------ MEDIA ADVISORY - PRESS CONFERENCE BREAST AND CERVICAL CANCER TREATMENT ACT MUST BE VOTED ON AND PASSED TO HELP SAVE WOMEN'S LIVES: WHAT IS CONGRESS WAITING FOR? Members of Congress, patients, doctors and advocates to participate in Press Conference WHAT: Press conference to bring attention to the critical need to enact S. 662, the Breast and Cervical Cancer Treatment Act, before Congress adjourns. This bill has bipartisan support and 74 co-sponsors. Breast cancer survivors, doctors and volunteers will tell their personal stories about the difficulties in finding treatment for low-income women diagnosed with breast and cervical cancer through CDC Early Detection program. Patients will include women screened and diagnosed through this federal program. Senators will also participate. WHO:
WHEN: 11:00 a.m. Thursday, October 5, 2000 WHERE: SC-6 (Capitol) Contact Jennifer Levine at NBCC for additional information - 202-973-0593. Report on Activities of the California Breast and Gynecological Cancer Treatment Task Force 1999-2000 (Source: Marj Plumb and Associates) Background The California Breast and Gynecological Cancer Treatment Task Force (the Task Force) was formed in January 1999 in response to a request from state Senator Jackie Speier to provide technical advice to the state legislature regarding breast and gynecological cancer treatment for low-income, uninsured women. The State of California had been providing breast and gynecological cancer screening but, up until the 2000/01 fiscal year, had not taken responsibility for funding the treatment of those diseases. Funded by The California Endowment, the work was completed over the past year in response to Sen. Speier’s request. Full reports for each section are available upon request. Legislation Update In May 2000 Governor Gray Davis included $20 million for the treatment of breast cancer for low-income uninsured and underinsured individuals. This funding is for the fiscal year July 2000 to June 2001. (Review page 29 of the Governor’s Budget May Revision found at http://www.dof.ca.gov/html/bud_docs/bud_link.htm). Legislation has recently passed both the Senate and the Assembly that will administer the funding included in the budget by the governor. This legislation institutionalizes a breast cancer treatment program as administered by the Department of Health Services through contracts to already existing private or public nonprofit organizations (Review AB 2878 at www.leginfo.ca.gov). Authored by Representative Howard Wayne and signed by the Governor, this program will be put into state statute, a status that requires the Department of Health Services to submit annual budget requests to fund the program. This legislation essentially replaces AB 40. The single greatest priority that was raised during the various meetings the Task Force held around the state with breast cancer advocates was the need for the breast cancer treatment program to provide full comprehensive care, not just treatment for breast cancer. While AB 2878 does not do that, we are continuing to communicate to the appropriate individuals the importance of this issue. Senator Jackie Speier has amended SB 1154 to institutionalize a breast and gynecological cancer treatment program, with comprehensive care, within the Department of Health Services (Review SB 1154 at www.leginfo.ca.gov). This legislation would take advantage of federal funding if federal legislation S. 662 passes the U.S. Senate this summer. S. 662 would allow states to fund breast and cervical cancer treatment through their Medicaid programs (in California it’s called MediCal) with a federal match. If S. 662 passes the U.S. Senate, we understand that Senator Speier will reintroduce SB 1154 in the beginning of the 2001 California Legislative term. We will keep our web page up-to-date as AB 2878 is implemented and other treatment and funding opportunities (i.e., SB 1154 and S. 662) become available. Please check www.treatmentnow.org to ensure you have the latest information. Feel free to contact any of the Task Force organizations for more information on this important issue. Statewide Survey Findings The Task Force commissioned a statewide survey of 1,000 registered voters and four focus groups conducted by Lake Snell Perry & Associates and Market Strategies (full report available on request.) Their findings:
Program Needs The Task Force, in analyzing strengths and weaknesses of the current Breast Cancer Treatment Program, believes that a long-term, sustainable treatment program (institutionalized within the government), that includes the following components, will provide the most cost-effective and efficient services for low-income, uninsured women:
Fifty-State Survey The Task Force commissioned the National Conference of State Legislators to conduct a survey of all fifty U.S. states to determine the level of government-based treatment programs (full report available on request.) Until California passed AB 2878 this year, there were only six other states funding treatment programs.
Cost Estimates The Task Force reviewed Department of Finance Current Population Survey information, as well as cost data developed by the actuarial firm of Milliman & Robertson to determine program cost estimates. For the first full year of the program:
Budget Impact In May 2000 Governor Gray Davis included $20 million in the State Budget for the treatment of breast cancer for low-income uninsured and underinsured individuals. This funding is for the fiscal year July 2000 to June 2001 and was approved by the State Legislature. (Review page 29 of the Governor’s Budget May Revision - http://www.dof.ca.gov/html/bud_docs/bud_link.htm). Task Force Members
For more information, please contact: Marj Plumb at Marj Plumb and Associates Additional information on the California Breast Cancer Treatment Fund can be found on the California HealthCare Foundation's web site at: http://www.chcf.org/press/view.cfm?itemID=423 10/01/00 |
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