From Del. Donna Stifler’s office:
Harford County State Delegate Donna Stifler (R., 35A) will kickoff October as Breast Cancer Awareness month by undergoing a televised digital mammogram at Upper Chesapeake Medical Center on Tuesday, September 15th.
“It is vitally imperative that women take action to protect their health. By publicly taking my mammogram, I hope to increase awareness that breast cancer screening is both essential and available. The faster we screen, the sooner we can begin breast cancer treatment,” said Stifler.
Stifler has been an outspoken proponent of increased education pertaining to women’s health issues. In Annapolis, she co-sponsored legislation that would have prohibited the denial of health insurance based on a pre-existing medical condition related to the occurrence of breast cancer. .
Stifler is preparing for her fourth session as a member of the House of Delegates representing portions of Harford County. She is a member of the National Conference of State Legislators Women’s Health Advisory Committee.
Upper Chesapeake Health Center has invested in the digital technology to improve accuracy while speeding up results and reducing the need for callbacks.
“We believe that yearly mammograms are vital to the fight against breast cancer,” said Sherry Roberts, Director of Imaging for Upper Chesapeake Health. “That is why we invested in the digital mammography system.”
That’s a great idea to help raise awareness and demystify the screening process. And further on the topic of breast cancer awareness, I invite you to check out this video — ahamoment.com/pg/moments/view/6789 — about a remarkable woman’s “aha moment” that led her to walk around the world for the cause. Literally. It’s a wonderful story, and it’s about a lot more than breast cancer. I think you’ll find it extremely inspiring.
All the best,
jack@ahamoment.com
The mammogram itself was not televised as was written in the press release. It was photographed for print to be used in an Upper Chesapeake Medical Center brochure and press release, along with the remarkable story of the many women in my family who have been affected by this disease. We hope our story prompts other women to get the necessary screening and to utilize the latest technology at UCMC for fast and accurate diagnosis. Our family’s struggles with this disease will have been worth it if even one life is saved because of it. Thank you Dagger for helping us spread this message!
does your bill specifically only mention breast cancer? what about other preexisting conditions? does your bill only tell insurance companies that they can’t deny coverage? what about cost of plan? can they jack that up?
We need true universal health coverage, with subsidies for those who can’t afford, with progressive rates (yes that means rich pay more), if we want to control issues like preexisting conditions
Some people love spending other peoples’ money.
Randy,
No the bill was not specific to breast cancer. In fact, it wasn’t disease specific at all. My testimony, however, focused on the BRCA2 gene, which causes certain cancers in carriers, predominantly breast cancer. The bill did not pass but insurance companies maintain that they are already prohibited from using genetic testing as a pre-existing condition. Thanks for the comment.
FYI Today marks the beginning of Breast Cancer Awareness Month! Wear Pink on Fridays in October to celebrate it.
they are indeed prohibited from using genetic testing data, but of course not preexisting conditions, ie lump or previous treatments.
would love to see u come around on universal health coverage, even if it meant some elevated taxes.