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Senate approves Mikulski Amendment, cancer screening for women
The amendment goes against recent USPSTF mammography recommendations.
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Today, the Senate voted 69 to 39 to approve the Mikulski Amendment guaranteeing all women receive an annual health exam — at no cost — and requiring all health care providers to cover comprehensive women’s preventive care and screenings with no copayments.
“Without this amendment, there would be no guarantee that women aged younger than 50 years would be covered for mammograms, no guarantee of an annual women’s health exam that would include screenings for heart disease and no guarantee that women would have access to this preventive care at no cost,” Barbara A. Mikulski, said in a press release.
According to the amendment, health care coverage will be based on comprehensive guidelines supported by the Health Resources and Services Administration and the CDC. This legislation would go against the recommendations made recently by United States Preventive Services Task Force that mammography screening for breast cancer begin on a biennial basis at the age of 50 years.
The Mikulski Amendment is not included in the House health reform bill.