[Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents Volume 33, Number 40 (Monday, October 6, 1997)]
[Pages 1474-1475]
[Online from the Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]

<R04>
Proclamation 7029--National Breast Cancer Awareness Month, 1997

October 1, 1997

By the President of the United States

of America

A Proclamation

    Every year we dedicate the month of October to focus on breast 
cancer and to reaffirm our national commitment to eradicate it. But for 
thousands of American women and their families and friends, breast 
cancer is a devastating reality that casts a shadow over their lives 
every day. In this decade alone, nearly half a million women will die of 
breast cancer, and more than 1.5 million new cases of the disease will 
be diagnosed.
    Our greatest weapon in the crusade against breast cancer is 
knowledge; knowledge of its causes and knowledge about prevention and 
treatment. My Administration has established a National Action Plan on 
Breast Cancer to unite organizations across the country in a 
collaborative effort to find out more about the disease and how best to 
respond to it.
    The Department of Health and Human Services is taking the lead in 
this national effort, through education and research at the National 
Cancer Institute and the Agency for Health Care Policy and Research; 
through nationwide screening and detection programs at the Centers for 
Disease Control and Prevention; through certification of mammography 
facilities by the Food and Drug Administration; through prevention 
services and treatment by health benefit programs such as Medicare and 
Medicaid; and through increased access to clinical treatment trials for 
cancer patients who are beneficiaries in Department of Defense and 
Department of Veterans Affairs programs. The Department of Defense has 
also initiated a breast cancer research program to reduce the incidence 
of breast cancer, increase survival rates, and improve the quality of 
life for women diagnosed with the disease.
    We can be proud of the progress we have made. One of the most 
promising recent research achievements is our increased understanding of 
the role of genetics in the cancer process. We have learned that cancer 
is a disease of altered genes and altered gene function, and research 
into the relationship between breast cancer and genes is helping us to 
better understand the basis of the disease. However, we must ensure that 
progress in genetic information is used only to advance and to improve 
the Nation's health--not as a basis for discrimination. That is why this 
year I have urged the Congress to pass a law that prevents health 
insurance plans from discriminating against individuals on the basis of 
genetic information.
    High-quality mammography has also proved to be a powerfully 
effective tool in the effort to detect breast cancer in its earliest, 
most treatable stage. The National Cancer Institute, the American Cancer 
Society, and many other professional organizations agree that women in 
their forties benefit from mammography screening, and earlier this year 
I was pleased to sign legislation that will help Medicare beneficiaries 
with cost-sharing for annual screening mammograms. The First Lady has 
also launched an annual campaign to encourage older women to use the 
Medicare mammography screening benefits.

[[Page 1475]]

    We have real cause for celebration during National Breast Cancer 
Awareness Month this year: recent data show that the breast cancer rate 
for American women is declining. Heartened by this knowledge, let us 
reaffirm our commitment to the crusade against breast cancer. Let us 
ensure that all women know about the dangers of breast cancer, are 
informed about the lifesaving potential of early detection, receive 
recommended screening services, and have access to health care services 
and information. Let us continue to move research forward to improve 
treatments and find a cure for this disease. Working together, we can 
look forward to the day when our mothers, wives, daughters, sisters, and 
friends can live long, healthy lives, free from the specter of breast 
cancer.
    Now, Therefore, I, William J. Clinton, President of the United 
States of America, by virtue of the authority vested in me by the 
Constitution and laws of the United States, do hereby proclaim October 
1997 as National Breast Cancer Awareness Month. I call upon government 
officials, businesses, communities, health care professionals, 
educators, volunteers, and all the people of the United States to 
reflect on the progress we have made in advancing our knowledge about 
breast cancer and to publicly reaffirm our national commitment to 
controlling and curing this disease.
    In Witness Whereof, I have hereunto set my hand this first day of 
October, in the year of our Lord nineteen hundred and ninety-seven, and 
of the Independence of the United States of America the two hundred and 
twenty-second.
                                            William J. Clinton

[Filed with the Office of the Federal Register, 8:45 a.m., October 3, 
1997]

Note: This proclamation was published in the Federal Register on October 
6.