Senate Concurrent Resolution 13 - Introduced
PAG LIN
1 1 SENATE CONCURRENT RESOLUTION NO.
1 2 BY RAGAN, BOETTGER, GRONSTAL, WARD, TINSMAN, LUNDBY,
1 3 ANGELO, ZIEMAN, DANIELSON, COURTNEY, DEARDEN,
1 4 KREIMAN, STEWART, HANCOCK, and LAMBERTI
1 5 (COMPANION TO LSB 3591HH BY UPMEYER)
1 6 A Concurrent Resolution relating to cervical cancer
1 7 awareness, and recognizing efforts by the Iowa
1 8 Department of Public Health and the Iowa Consortium
1 9 for Comprehensive Cancer Control in promoting that
1 10 awareness.
1 11 WHEREAS, after breast cancer, cervical cancer is
1 12 the second most common cancer in women on a worldwide
1 13 basis; and
1 14 WHEREAS, according to federal government
1 15 statistics, cervical cancer is the third most common
1 16 gynecological cancer among American women; and
1 17 WHEREAS, the American Cancer Society estimates that
1 18 approximately 10,370 new cases of cervical cancer will
1 19 be diagnosed in 2005, 3,710 of which will result in
1 20 fatalities; and
1 21 WHEREAS, despite the fact that with regular and
1 22 accurate screening cervical cancer is highly
1 23 preventable, and that widespread screening programs
1 24 have helped to reduce cervical cancer death rates,
1 25 fatalities continue to occur; and
1 26 WHEREAS, cervical cancer cases in the United States
1 27 are generally attributed to a lack of education,
1 28 reduced access to regular cervical cancer screening,
1 29 and inaccurate screening analysis; and
1 30 WHEREAS, experience indicates that increasing
2 1 cervical cancer awareness, especially among minority
2 2 women and women with lower incomes, significantly
2 3 reduces the probability of mortality; and that such
2 4 women are disproportionately affected by cervical
2 5 cancer because they are less likely to have access to
2 6 routine screenings and may lack insurance coverage;
2 7 and
2 8 WHEREAS, approximately half of all women diagnosed
2 9 with cervical cancer have never been screened for
2 10 cervical cancer, and 10 percent of women diagnosed
2 11 with cervical cancer have not been screened within the
2 12 five=year period preceding diagnosis; and
2 13 WHEREAS, the median age of cervical cancer patients
2 14 at diagnosis is 47, the youngest median age for all
2 15 female reproductive cancers; and
2 16 WHEREAS, new screening technologies, including
2 17 technologies approved by the federal Food and Drug
2 18 Administration for human papillomavirus testing, which
2 19 is the most important risk factor for the development
2 20 of cervical cancer, offer new opportunities to finally
2 21 eliminate this potentially deadly disease through
2 22 early identification of women at increased risk; and
2 23 WHEREAS, leading medical organizations, including
2 24 the American College of Obstetricians and
2 25 Gynecologists, the American Cancer Society, and the
2 26 Association of Reproductive Health Professionals, have
2 27 recently updated their screening guidelines to include
2 28 the technologies approved by the federal Food and Drug
2 29 Administration for human papillomavirus testing; and
2 30 WHEREAS, women are entitled to proper cervical
3 1 cancer information and access to routine screening so
3 2 they can be empowered to make informed health care
3 3 decisions; and
3 4 WHEREAS, the General Assembly recognizes that
3 5 through education and screening, women can lower their
3 6 likelihood for developing cervical cancer and that
3 7 through early detection, cervical cancer can be
3 8 successfully treated after it develops; NOW THEREFORE,
3 9 BE IT RESOLVED BY THE SENATE, THE HOUSE OF
3 10 REPRESENTATIVES CONCURRING, That the General Assembly
3 11 commends and supports the Iowa Department of Public
3 12 Health and the Iowa Consortium for Comprehensive
3 13 Cancer Control in taking the lead in formulating and
3 14 continually developing the "Changing the Face of
3 15 Cancer in Iowa: A State Plan", which serves as a
3 16 nationwide model of effective cancer control
3 17 strategies; in updating the department's "Healthy
3 18 Iowans 2010" publication to include data regarding
3 19 cervical cancer in Iowa women and the evaluation of
3 20 current methods used to provide Iowa women with
3 21 information regarding cervical cancer, access to
3 22 regular screening, and options for increasing
3 23 screening accuracy; and in identifying pockets of need
3 24 and priority strategies for enhancing the ability of
3 25 health care providers to recommend or perform early
3 26 detection services, programs, and procedures for their
3 27 patients; and
3 28 BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, That updates, successes,
3 29 and progress reports related to the "Changing the Face
3 30 of Cancer in Iowa: A State Plan" shall be presented
4 1 annually to the Governor, the President of the Senate,
4 2 and the Speaker of the House of Representatives, and
4 3 posted annually on the state of Iowa website homepage.
4 4 LSB 3591SS 81
4 5 rn:nh/pj/5.1
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