[Congressional Record Volume 148, Number 53 (Thursday, May 2, 2002)]
[House]
[Page H2095]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                    NATIONAL BREAST CANCER COALITION

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under a previous order of the House, the 
gentleman from Maryland (Mr. Cummings) is recognized for 5 minutes.
  Mr. CUMMINGS. Mr. Speaker, recently I was visited here in Washington 
by the Maryland Chapter of the National Breast Cancer Coalition. Their 
message was very simple. This year alone, more than 225,000 women will 
be diagnosed with breast cancer, and more than 40,000 women will die 
from this terrible disease.
  Despite these statistics, we still do not know what causes breast 
cancer, how to prevent it, or how to treat it effectively. The National 
Breast Cancer Coalition needs our help in moving towards their goal of 
eradicating this dreadful disease.

                              {time}  1715

  I want to add that combining all age groups, Caucasian women are more 
likely to develop breast cancer than African-American women. However, 
African-American women are more likely to die of breast cancer. Past 
studies show that nearly half, 47 percent, of all African-American 
women diagnosed with invasive breast cancer die from the disease within 
10 years.
  I come to the floor today with two questions: What can we do to end 
the suffering and needless loss of life, and what can Congress do?
  What can we do? Individually we need to make sure our loved ones, 
friends, family and coworkers have an annual mammogram and perform a 
monthly self-breast examination. Today, there is no cure. So prevention 
is the answer. I do not care how you get them to the examination room, 
beg or plead, but it must be done. Life is precious. Save a life by 
encouraging yearly mammograms and monthly self-breast exams.
  What can we do as Members of Congress? There is legislation that is 
pending in committees that needs to be enacted and enacted now. Every 
day more women are diagnosed with cancer. Every day women are dying 
from the disease. I urge, no, I beg my colleagues to support and ensure 
that legislation is passed in this session that will lead to a cure for 
breast cancer. In the meantime, I beg my colleagues to help those who 
will develop or have breast cancer by providing medication for breast 
cancer.
  Specifically what can we do? We must enact H.R. 1624, the Access to 
Cancer Therapies Act. This bill would provide Medicare coverage of oral 
anti-cancer drugs. This legislation extends coverage for all cancer 
drugs, whether it is oral or injectable.
  What can we do? We must enact H.R. 1723, the Breast Cancer and 
Environmental Research Act. It is generally believed that our 
environment plays a role in the development of breast cancer. The 
extent of its role is uncertain. This bill would make grants for multi- 
institutional and multi-discipline research centers to study the links 
between the environment and breast cancer.
  What can we do? We must provide $175 million in the fiscal year 2003 
Department of Defense appropriations for their Peer-Reviewed Breast 
Cancer Research Programs. Since 1992, this program has brought clinical 
trials into community settings, provided training and recruitment 
awards to doctors and scientists, and given grants to further promising 
ideas that could lead to a cure. More than 90 percent of this funding 
goes directly to the funding of these grants.
  Finally, Mr. Speaker, we must enact H.R. 602, the Genetic Information 
Nondiscrimination in Health Insurance and Employment Act. This bill 
prohibits health insurers and employers from discriminating based on 
genetic information. Passage of all these legislative measures would go 
a long way to help eradicate breast cancer in our lifetime.

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