[Congressional Record Volume 143, Number 143 (Wednesday, October 22, 1997)]
[House]
[Pages H8985-H8986]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                  JOIN THE FIGHT AGAINST BREAST CANCER

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under a previous order of the House, the 
gentleman from Massachusetts [Mr. McGovern] is recognized for 5 
minutes.
  Mr. McGOVERN. Mr. Speaker, breast cancer is currently the second 
leading cause of cancer deaths among American women. One woman in eight 
will develop breast cancer during her lifetime. In 1996 alone, an 
estimated 44,000 women died from this terrible disease.
  While these statistics are sobering indeed, there is hope. If breast 
cancer is detected early, the probability that a woman can survive is 
greater than 90 percent. Certainly, we must do everything in our power 
to identify the signs of breast cancer early, treat the symptoms 
aggressively, and make continued medical attention affordable and 
accessible. As we celebrate Breast Cancer Awareness Month, we in 
Congress should recognize the obligation that we share in the national 
battle against this terrible illness.
  I am a cosponsor of several important pieces of legislation that seek 
to establish high standards for quality and affordable medical 
treatment of breast cancer, including H.R. 164 and H.R. 135, which my 
colleagues, the gentlewoman from California, Ms. Anna Eshoo, and the 
gentlewoman from Connecticut, Ms. Rosa DeLauro, introduced earlier this 
year. Both of these measures would give breast cancer patients who 
undergo mastectomies the health care coverage they need to fully 
recuperate from their illness.
  When I meet the women throughout my district in Massachusetts, I hear 
how concerned they are that their health insurance will not adequately 
provide for them if they are one day diagnosed with breast cancer.
  Back in January, the Massachusetts Breast Cancer Coalition wrote me 
to ask that I cosponsor the legislation of the gentlewoman from 
Connecticut [Ms. DeLauro], which requires a 48-hour minimum hospital 
stay for patients undergoing mastectomies, and a 24-hour stay for lymph 
node removal for the treatment of breast cancer.
  Under the legislation drafted by my colleague from Connecticut, 
physicians and patients, not insurance companies, determine whether or 
not a shorter hospital stay is warranted. I strongly agree with their 
sentiment, that decisions about hospital stays following these painful 
and psychologically distressing surgeries should be between the health 
care provider and the patient. I was proud to become a cosponsor of 
that legislation.
  The gentlewoman from Connecticut [Ms. DeLauro] and the gentlewoman 
from California [Ms. Eshoo] have also worked to establish a site on the 
World Wide Web that allows visitors to learn more about breast cancer, 
read and submit personal encounters with the disease, and build support 
for many of the legislative initiatives that seek to improve conditions 
for breast cancer patients.
  As I read through some of the personal stories posted on that 
Internet site, I noticed a number of individuals who had written from 
my home State of Massachusetts, and I would like to share a couple of 
those stories.
  Lynn DeCristofaro of Massachusetts wrote, and I quote: ``I am only 16 
years old, and I had to watch my 24-year-old sister die from breast 
cancer. I watched her come home after a mastectomy when it was obvious 
that she should be in the hospital.''
  Mrs. R. Russell of Massachusetts wrote: ``I am a breast cancer 
survivor who is doing very well. However, I never know if the day will 
come that I have a reoccurrence. I think a recurrence is enough to 
worry about, without additional concern that my insurance company may 
not adequately cover my care.''
  Christopher Carron of Massachusetts wrote: ``Two years ago my mother 
was diagnosed with breast cancer. She immediately had a mastectomy and 
reconstructive surgery. Luckily, she lives in Connecticut, where 
minimum stays in the hospital are required by law, and her health 
insurance company was flexible in the amount of time she spent in the 
hospital.
  ``I now realize that my mom's care was the exception, not the rule. 
Please end the inhumane treatment of our Nation's mothers, daughters, 
sisters, grandmothers, and granddaughters, and vote for H.R. 135 and 
H.R. 164. These women need to be treated with dignity and more than 
ample health care. My mom is now a 2-year cancer survivor and is 
fighting for herself and the rights of millions of other women who have 
faced this horrible battle. Thank you,'' he wrote.
  Mr. Speaker, after hearing the stories of these individuals and 
countless others like them, I do not see how any Member of this body 
could say that current law is doing an adequate job of addressing the 
health needs of breast cancer patients in America.

                              {time}  1730

  Doctors in this country are spending far too much time fighting with 
insurance companies to get permission to give their patients the 
treatment they need. Physicians who treat women suffering from breast 
cancer should never be put in that position.
  Our legislation will allow doctors to make decisions based on the 
health and long-term well-being of their patients and not the bottom 
line. Clearly we in Congress must do more to ensure that women 
suffering from this dreaded disease have access to quality, affordable,

[[Page H8986]]

and complete health care coverage that they need and they deserve.
  Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to become cosponsors of H.R. 135 
and H.R. 164 and to reassert our commitment to protecting the health of 
American women.

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