Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz (FL-23) issued the following statement on the announcement by the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) that it is adopting the American Cancer Society (ACS) breast cancer screening guidelines:
“I am thrilled that the Department of Veterans Affairs announced that it will shift from the controversial United States Preventative Services Task Force (USPSTF) guidelines for breast cancer screening and mammography to the American Cancer Society’s breast cancer screening guidelines. For years, I have fought the USPSTF guidelines, along with other cancer experts and advocacy organizations. In the 114th Congress, I sponsored legislation that became law, which placed a moratorium on the USPSTF breast cancer screening guidelines, to allow breast cancer experts and organizations to review and reach consensus on when screening should begin. The law requires coverage for mammography beginning at age 40.
Having recently learned that the VA previously adopted the USPSTF guidelines, I filed legislation last week after speaking with VA Secretary David Shulkin that would ensure that the widely accepted guidelines – which call for women to begin breast cancer screening at 40 – are required to be used by the VA for veterans and all women. I will continue to aggressively pursue this legislation.
Nonetheless, the announcement this week by Secretary Shulkin is a tremendous victory for women veterans who now formally have the choice to begin screenings at the age of 40, and be eligible for yearly exams at age 45. I will closely monitor how this policy is implemented, but it would be a major step in allowing our women veterans to take control of their own breast health. And now they can also take comfort in knowing that that they will not be treated any differently than women in the private sector. As a breast cancer survivor myself, who was diagnosed at the young age of 41, I know how vital this life-saving policy can be for millions of our veterans.”
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