FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE                    Contact: Adriana Surfas
Wednesday, May 21, 2008                           (202) 225-3661     

DeLauro’s Breast Cancer Patient Protection Act

Focus of Energy & Commerce Health Subcommittee Hearing

Washington , D.C. – Congresswoman Rosa L. DeLauro’s (CT-3) applauded the Energy and Commerce Health Subcommittee for holding the first ever hearing on her bipartisan legislation, the Breast Cancer Patient Protection Act (H.R. 758).  DeLauro, who first introduced the bill in 1996, submitted written testimony in support of the legislation that would allow a woman and her doctor to decide whether she should recuperate from a mastectomy or lumpectomy for at least 48 hours in the hospital or whether she has enough support to get quality care at home. 

The legislation has 219 cosponsors in the House and Senators Olympia Snowe (R-ME) and Mary Landrieu (D-LA) have introduced companion legislation, which has 19 cosponsors.  Additionally, a petition at myLifetime.com calling for passage of the bill has been signed nearly 22 million times.  It is also supported by a number of high profile organizations, including BreastCancer.org, Susan G. Komen, CT Breast Cancer Coalition Foundation, American Cancer Society, Families USA, The Oncology Nursing Society, and the Breast Cancer Network of Strength (to view the letters of support please visit www.house.gov/delauro).  

Below is the text of DeLauro’s testimony.

“Thank you, Chairman Pallone and Ranking Member Deal for convening this hearing today on a critical piece of legislation. I would also like to thank Dr. Kristen Zarfos of Connecticut for her testimony today as well as Alva Williams from North Carolina for sharing her story. Thank you to Lifetime Television for your partnership over the past 12 years on this bill, as well as to the young women from Georgetown Visitation of the Think Pink organization. The Breast Cancer Patient Protection Act will ensure that the decision of when to send a patient home after having a mastectomy will be made by the patient and her doctor, and not her insurance company.

“More than 12 years ago, I first met Dr. Zarfos.  She walked into my office in Connecticut and told me that HMOs were forcing her to discharge her patients before they were ready – sometimes just hours after mastectomy surgery.  Her experiences inspired me to get involved. With her tireless work on behalf of patients in my home state of Connecticut , the help of Lifetime Television, and overwhelming support for this bill at the grassroots level, I am inspired to maintain the pressure and the focus to enact this legislation.

“Today, a woman’s chance of developing breast cancer in her lifetime is one in eight - almost everyone knows someone who has suffered from this disease.  If you have watched a loved one fighting for her life, you understand how important it is to have not only the loving support of family as I did during my fight against ovarian cancer, but also adequate recovery time in the hospital after surgery – so you have the professional care to begin healing and avoid infection.  A mastectomy is not an easy surgery – it is physically and emotionally traumatic. 

 “That is what the Breast Cancer Patient Protection Act is all about. It says that when it comes to mastectomies and lumpectomies, adequate recovery time in the hospital should not be negotiable.  The last thing any woman should be doing at that time is fighting with her insurance company. This bill does not mandate a 48 hour hospital stay if a patient chooses to go home sooner, nor does it set 48 hours as a maximum amount of time a woman can stay in the hospital. It simply ensures that any decision in favor of a shorter or longer hospital stay will be made by the patient and her doctor, and not an insurance company.  It would also ensure women have access to second opinions and adequate hospital stays after having a lumpectomy. 

“H.R. 758 is supported by a number of well-respected organizations including the Breast Cancer Network of Strength (formerly the Y-Me National Breast Cancer Organization), Families USA, American Cancer Society, Susan G. Komen for the Cure Advocacy Alliance, Connecticut Breast Cancer Coalition, Oncology Nursing Society, and Breastcancer.org. The bill also enjoys broad bipartisan support in Congress - 219 cosponsors in the House and 19 cosponsors in the Senate. Celebrities including Marcia Cross and Jewel have worked in support of this bill, and nearly 22 million people have gone to Lifetime Television to sign its online petition in support of the legislation. The time has come to sign this legislation into law, to restore patient and consumer rights to breast cancer patients and their families.

“I have worked on the Breast Cancer Patient Protection Act for an entire decade in this Congress, without a vote or hearing ever having been called and I want to applaud Chairman Pallone for convening this hearing today. We are at a turning point in our battle to pass this common-sense legislation. This is our opportunity to meet our obligations as a nation and to make clear: we value women’s health. Thank you for your attention to this vital issue.”

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www.house.gov/delauro