Progress in the Prairie State!
Both houses of the Illinois Legislature unanimously approved versions of Reducing Breast Cancer Disparities Act of 2008. Although minor differences in the two forms must be reconciled, the landmark bill will have a significant impact on access to breast health care and disparities in the state.
The Metropolitan Chicago Breast Cancer Task Force, which included the Illinois Affiliates of Susan G. Komen for the Cure®, the American Cancer Society, Y-ME Illinois, ACCESS Community Health Network, the Chicago Chapter of the National Black Nurses Association and leading hospitals, joined with key legislators to draft and promote the new statute.
The bill increases the state's investment in fighting breast cancer by about $3 million per year. Other provisions include eliminating co-pays and deductibles for mammography screening, establishing a patient navigation program to help women in state healthcare programs, raising Medicaid reimbursements for mammography in order to increase the number of providers and creating an expert panel to set quality standards for mammography.
Learn more about the Chicago Komen Community Challenge below. This grassroots advocacy campaign, which kicked off in Chicago in July 2007, helped raise awareness of the shocking and unjust breast cancer disparities in Illinois. These events brought together activists and decision makers for dialogue about closing the gap in breast health care.
Why Chicago, Illinois?
Chicago was identified in The Breast Cancer Mortality Report: Closing the Gaps in Eight Communities as one of eight U.S. communities with alarmingly high breast cancer mortality rates. On July 31 and August 1, 2007 the Komen Community Challenge came to Chicago -- our fifth stop on this nationwide campaign -- to help persuade state lawmakers to fully fund breast cancer screening for all uninsured Illinois women.
Did you know?
White women in Chicago are more likely to get breast cancer, but African-American women are much more likely to die of the disease. In fact, African-American women in Chicago are 68 percent more likely to die from breast cancer than white women due to disparities in access to screening and treatment.
Did you know?
Almost half the states deny Medicaid coverage to women with breast cancer if they were not diagnosed in a federally funded clinic. In 2006, Illinois moved away from this harmful and unfair policy. Today, uninsured women in Illinois can get access to breast cancer treatment regardless of where they were first diagnosed.
Public Policy Challenges
Early in 2007, Governor Blagojevich's administration pledged to fund screening for every low-income and uninsured woman in the state within the next ten years through programs like Illinois Breast and Cervical Cancer Program and the STAND Against Cancer initiative. The Illinois House of Representatives, led by State Representative Sara Feigenholtz, passed a resolution supporting the ten-year goal as well. By mid-year, and at the time of the Illinois Komen Community Challenge, Governor Blagojevich and the Illinois Legislature were at an impasse about the budget. The Illinois Komen Community Challenge, topping off a year-long lobbying campaign by the Komen Chicagoland Affiliate, helped make sure that breast cancer remained a high priority.
The Events
On July 31, 2007, 125 people turned out for a reception at The Cubby Bear followed by an outing with legislators to the Cubs game. Illinois Lieutenant Governor Pat Quinn headlined the event and spoke eloquently about the grassroots movement that helped secure passage of House Bill 147, which requires insurance companies to cover comprehensive clinical breast exams. Ruth Jacobs, RN, and Deb Williams, RN, two Komen Chicagoland Affiliate Board Members, were recognized for their leadership in shepherding the bill through the Legislature.
The following night, on August 1, 2007, 300 people rallied at Fellowship Missionary Baptist Church on Chicago's South Side to urge state lawmakers to fully fund breast cancer screening for all uninsured Illinois women. Despite the fact that nearly every state lawmaker was tied up in Springfield, an impressive array of elected officials made time to attend and share their commitment to Close the Gaps: State Senators Mattie Hunter and Jacqueline Collins; Aldermen Pat Dowell and Joe Moore; and Cook County Commissioner Tony Peraica. Groups such as American Cancer Society, Y-ME, and ACCESS Community Health Network addressed the need to reduce disparities in breast cancer incidence and mortality. Two breast cancer survivors, Barbara Akpan and Annie Staten, inspired the crowd with their personal stories.
In addition, during the Illinois Komen Community Challenge, more than one million Chicago residents heard about the importance of funding breast cancer screenings for uninsured women through a series of audio news releases, ‘In the Know' television ads, and Komen spokesperson media interviews. The intensive media outreach helped persuade lawmakers as well.
Outcomes and Next Steps
The impact of the Illinois Komen Community Challenge was profound. Within weeks of the Community Challenge events, Governor Blagojevich announced a landmark state investment in breast and cervical cancer screening. He took executive action to fully fund the Illinois Breast and Cervical Cancer Program so that it can screen every low-income woman in the state. Also after the Community Challenge, Governor Blagojevich signed House Bill 147, the new law that requires insurance companies to cover clinical breast exams. These successes show that many unmet breast health care needs can be solved through improved public policies.
With these policy advances, Illinois has distinguished itself as a national leader in the fight against breast cancer. Even so, we still have much more work to do before every woman in the state has an equal chance at beating this disease. The Komen Chicagoland Affiliate continues to work with the Governor and the Legislature to implement the expansion of screening services and to make breast health information available through Chicago Aldermen's offices, among several important initiatives.
We need your help to Close the Gaps in Illinois. Please tell your legislators to make breast cancer a priority and learn how to get involved in the breast cancer movement.
