[Federal Register Volume 88, Number 191 (Wednesday, October 4, 2023)]
[Presidential Documents]
[Pages 68427-68428]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2023-22230]


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  Federal Register / Vol. 88, No. 191 / Wednesday, October 4, 2023 / 
Presidential Documents  

[[Page 68427]]


                Proclamation 10635 of September 29, 2023

                
National Breast Cancer Awareness Month, 2023

                By the President of the United States of America

                A Proclamation

                Cancer touches nearly every family in America, 
                including mine. That is why finding cures and 
                addressing the needs of patients and their families is 
                a central pillar of my Unity Agenda, as I discussed in 
                my very first State of the Union address--it is the 
                kind of goal that can unite us all as Americans, 
                regardless of our differences. This National Breast 
                Cancer Awareness Month, let us all recommit to the work 
                of ending cancer as we know it. May we honor those we 
                have lost, offer strength to those who continue to live 
                with breast cancer, and work to protect the health of 
                future generations.

                Nearly 300,000 women will be diagnosed with breast 
                cancer this year, and one in eight women in America 
                will be diagnosed with the disease in their lifetimes. 
                We have made enormous progress in our decades-long 
                fight against cancer--discovering new prevention and 
                early-detection measures and exploring medicines and 
                therapies to extend and save lives. Despite these 
                advancements, a breast cancer diagnosis is not only 
                frightening but also a doorway into a confusing world 
                of appointments, procedures, and expenses. While facing 
                months of grueling treatments, breast cancer patients 
                and their families are flooded with a bewildering 
                amount of medical information to decipher and often 
                have to advocate to receive basic care and attention. 
                On top of these stresses, they also worry about paying 
                their medical bills.

                That is why the First Lady and I reignited the Cancer 
                Moonshot and set ambitious goals to cut the overall 
                cancer death rate by at least half in the next 25 
                years, transform more cancers from death sentences into 
                treatable diseases, and improve the treatment 
                experience for patients and their families. As a first 
                step toward realizing these goals, I established the 
                Advanced Research Projects Agency for Health (ARPA-H) 
                and secured $2.5 billion in bipartisan funding to drive 
                scientific breakthroughs in prevention, detection, and 
                treatment for cancer and other diseases. The agency is 
                pioneering partnerships to help disseminate the impact 
                of those breakthroughs to clinics and patients. And 
                recently, it announced research into the use of mRNA 
                technology, an innovative component of the COVID-19 
                vaccine, to train our own immune systems to fight 
                cancer and other diseases. It will also lead the 
                exploration of novel technologies to enhance the 
                precision and accuracy of surgical procedures involved 
                in removing cancerous tumors from the body. Also, the 
                first class of Moonshot scholars has been selected, 
                which will help build a cancer research workforce that 
                better represents the diversity of America and prepare 
                a new wave of innovators in the cancer field.

                Improving treatment options is only part of the fight. 
                We also need to make those treatments affordable for 
                everyone who needs them. That is why I made it a 
                priority for the Inflation Reduction Act to cap out-of-
                pocket drug costs for seniors on Medicare at $2,000 per 
                year--including expensive cancer drugs. My 
                Administration has also strengthened Medicaid and the 
                Affordable Care Act (ACA) to expand and protect health 
                care coverage, saving nearly 15 million Americans $800 
                per year on health insurance premiums.

[[Page 68428]]

                Because screening and early detection are critical to 
                saving the lives of breast cancer patients, my 
                Administration remains committed to maintaining and 
                improving the accessibility of cancer care secured in 
                the ACA. This means requiring insurers to pay for 
                cancer screenings--including mammograms--as well as 
                maintaining coverage for cancer survivors and others 
                who have preexisting conditions. In addition, we are 
                doubling our investment and making new alliances with 
                community health centers that provide early detection 
                and support services to underserved communities. Most 
                recently, we also expanded access to breast cancer 
                screenings for any veteran exposed to burn pits--
                regardless of their age or family history.

                More information is available online at cancer.gov/types/breast types/breast or by calling 1-800-422-6237 to reach 
                information specialists at the National Cancer 
                Institute, who can answer cancer-related questions in 
                English and Spanish. Also, the Centers for Disease 
                Control and Prevention's National Breast and Cervical 
                Cancer Early Detection Program provides breast cancer 
                screenings and diagnostic services to those with low 
                incomes who are uninsured or otherwise qualify for the 
                program--learn more at cdc.gov/cancer/nbccedp/screenings.htm.

                For the lives we can save and those we have lost, let 
                this National Breast Cancer Awareness Month be a moment 
                of unity that rallies the country to end cancer as we 
                know it. Together, we can give patients, survivors, and 
                their families the care, hope, and support they 
                deserve.

                NOW, THEREFORE, I, JOSEPH R. BIDEN JR., President of 
                the United States of America, by virtue of the 
                authority vested in me by the Constitution and the laws 
                of the United States, do hereby proclaim October 2023 
                as National Breast Cancer Awareness Month. I encourage 
                citizens, government agencies, private businesses, 
                nonprofit organizations, and other interested groups to 
                join in activities that will increase awareness of what 
                Americans can do to prevent and control breast cancer 
                and pay tribute to those who have lost their lives to 
                this disease.

                IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this 
                twenty-ninth day of September, in the year of our Lord 
                two thousand twenty-three, and of the Independence of 
                the United States of America the two hundred and forty-
                eighth.
                
                
                    (Presidential Sig.)

[FR Doc. 2023-22230
Filed 10-3-23; 8:45 am]
Billing code 3395-F4-P