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The Maine Breast and Cervical Program
Helps Removes Financial Barriers for Women Ages 50 -65
Tracey Cousineau, LSW-C, Outreach Manager
07/19/2007
The Maine Breast and Cervical Program (MBCHP) is a health screening program
for
·
Simply being a woman and
getting older puts you at risk for breast cancer and you are at higher
risk if your mother, sister, or daughter has had breast cancer
·
Each year approximately
1,040 women are diagnosed with breast cancer and 55 with cervical cancer
·
Approximately 200 women die from breast cancer and 15 from cervical
cancer annually
·
It is
estimated that 32,030 women are in need of breast and cervical cancer
screening services annually, based on health insurance coverage and
income
·
If women
age 50 and older obtain regular screening for breast cancer, from 20-
39% of breast cancer deaths could be prevented. Virtually all of
cervical cancer deaths could be prevented through regular screenings
Women who are older or have limited income are at higher risk to develop
cancer and heart disease, and less likely to be screened for cancer.
The
MBCHP program was created to offer annual breast and cervical testing
free for women between the ages of 50-64 who fall below 250% of federal
poverty level, who have not been screened in the past year, and who have
no other source of health care reimbursement, such as insurance. The
program is funded through a cooperative agreement with the Centers for
Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), under the National Breast and
Cervical Cancer Early Detection Program.
You can apply for the
MBCHP by calling 1-800-438-5514 and answering a few simple questions or
for more information about affordable breast cancer and screenings,
please call Tracey Cousineau at Health Access Network, 794-6700 or
1-888-426-4584. I encourage
you to ask your health care provider about mammography screening because
early and regular screening is the key to reducing the death rate from
cancer and heart disease.
Not just once, but for a lifetime.