[Congressional Record Volume 143, Number 143 (Wednesday, October 22, 1997)]
[House]
[Pages H8989-H8990]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




        SUPPORT OF LEGISLATION TO HELP WOMEN FIGHT BREAST CANCER

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under a previous order of the House, the 
gentleman from Texas [Mr. Bentsen] is recognized for 5 minutes.
  Mr. BENTSEN. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in strong support of 
legislation that will help to fight breast cancer. These bills, 
including H.R. 1350 and H.R. 164, would ensure that women have 
sufficient time to recover from breast cancer treatments and ensure 
that women have the medical treatments they need to fight this 
difficult and dreadful disease.
  Already 135 would ensure that women and doctors can work together to 
determine what is the best treatment for each woman. I am an original 
cosponsor of this bill that will require all health plans to provide 
minimum hospital stays for those women who undergo mastectomies and 
lymph node dissections. Without this protection, women may have to 
choose between their health and their treatments. In the past, Congress 
has acted to provide minimum protections for pregnant women and their 
children and we should provide the same protections for women with 
breast cancer.
  H.R. 164 would ensure that women with breast cancer would receive the 
necessary breast reconstruction surgeries they need. This legislation 
would require all health plans to provide coverage for this surgery. 
Many health plans do not currently provide this coverage because health 
plans believe these surgeries are not necessary. I believe doctors and 
patients should decide which treatment plan would benefit each patient 
without interference from their health plans. This legislation would 
provide this much needed protection for breast cancer patients.
  I would like to commend the gentlewoman from Connecticut [Ms. 
DeLauro] for organizing this special order to highlight these bills as 
part of Breast Cancer Awareness Month. It is particularly important to 
me, as the Representative of the Texas Medical Center, that I have many 
constituents who are active in the fight against the disease that we 
can defeat.
  In honor of Breast Cancer Awareness Month, I would also like to 
highlight the work of two outstanding individuals who are constituents 
of mine: One, Dr. Dixie Melillo, a physician who operates the Rose, a 
clinic targeting women and in particular low-income women to ensure 
that they receive adequate breast cancer screening and treatment.
  After years of hard work, Dr. Melillo has been able to expand her 
operation to three clinics in and around my district, and I commend her 
for her work.
  Second, I want to honor Dr. Jennifer Cousins, who runs the Women's 
Health Initiative at Baylor College of Medicine, which recently 
celebrated its third anniversary.
  Three years ago, the National Institutes of Health awarded Baylor 
College of Medicine a grant of $11.8 million to conduct the largest, 
longest clinical trial in Baylor's history. This study is examining the 
health of more than 5,400 women over a 12-year period, and focuses on 
diseases that are critically important to the health of women: 
Cardiovascular, colorectal cancer, osteoporosis and, in particular, 
breast cancer. Breast cancer is the second killer among cancer in 
women.
  The information provided by the Women's Health Initiative will lead 
to breakthrough treatments for these diseases and improve the lives of 
women in Texas and across the Nation. The Baylor Clinical Center has 
recruited 3,300 women for an observational study to gather information 
regarding risk factors for these deceases.
  The Baylor Clinical Center will also recruit an additional 2,100 
women for a clinical trial to research whether diet and hormone 
replacement therapy will help women lead healthier lives. Information 
gathered from this clinical study will help women to make informed 
decisions about which therapies to use to prevent the disease and stay 
healthy.
  I also want to highlight the efforts of Dr. Jennifer Cousins, 
Director for the Center for Women's Health, to bring this critical WHI 
study to the Houston area. I believe Dr. Cousins is critical to the 
success of this study, and she should be commended for her hard work.
  Mr. Speaker, to really honor these two women leaders in Houston, the

[[Page H8990]]

House should schedule and pass H.R. 135 and H.R. 164 and show that we 
too in the House mean business in the fight against breast cancer.

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