[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 152 (2006), Part 12]
[House]
[Page 16116]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




         IN SUPPORT OF THE BREAST CANCER PATIENT PROTECTION ACT

  (Ms. SLAUGHTER asked and was given permission to address the House 
for 1 minute and to revise and extend her remarks.)
  Ms. SLAUGHTER. Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of the Breast Cancer 
Patient Protection Act and urge its passage before the August recess.
  Breast cancer is so pervasive that it touches every American family. 
The diagnosis of breast cancer is frightening enough not to have to 
fight the insurance companies, as has been said before. One in eight 
women is going to be diagnosed with breast cancer during her lifetime, 
and it remains the number one cause of death in women between the ages 
of 30 and 54.
  In my congressional district, there are almost 1,500 instances of 
breast cancer and nearly 300 women die every year. And rushing a woman 
through a hospital stay after a mastectomy and pressuring her to return 
to her normal life almost immediately hampers her recovery. That is why 
it is imperative that we pass the Breast Cancer Patient Protection Act.
  We must also support research into better breast cancer detection 
methods. Mammographies, which is the only tool we have had for 40 
years, miss too many women and cannot suffice as our gold standard. But 
instead of passing legislation to stop drive-through mastectomies or 
supporting funding increases for research and development, we have 
become a drive-through Congress, rushing to pass what is politically 
divisive.
  This bill deserves passage.

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