Cancer Patients and Survivors Traveled to Harrisburg to Urge Legislators to Make Cancer a Priority
Volunteers Met with Pennsylvania Lawmakers to Ask for Support for Strengthening the Clean Indoor Air Act and Maintaining Funding for the HealthyWoman program.
HARRISBURG, PA – April 25, 2017 – Over 130 cancer patients, survivors and caregivers from across the state traveled to the State Capitol in Harrisburg today and met with Pennsylvania’s lawmakers about the need for strengthening the Clean Indoor Air Act and maintaining funding for the HealthyWoman program. The visit was part of the American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network’s (ACS CAN) annual Day at the Capitol.
In Pennsylvania, an estimated 77,710 people will be diagnosed with cancer in 2017, and 28,510 will lose their battle with the disease. Those gathered at the State Capitol today called on state lawmakers to change this by taking steps to make the fight against cancer a priority.
Specifically, the ACS CAN Pennsylvania volunteers asked the legislature to:
• Protect all Pennsylvania workers from the dangers of secondhand smoke by removing exemptions currently in Pennsylvania’s Clean Indoor Air Act
• Maintain funding for breast and cervical cancer screenings (HealthyWoman) at $2.56 million
Additionally, Representative Matt Baker and Mary Jo Daley, were awarded ACS CAN’s Distinguished Advocacy Award. Representative Baker was awarded for his leadership and commitment to advancing strong public health policies. Most recently, Representative Baker’s leadership drove the passage of oral chemo legislation which provides cancer patients access to available and emerging orally administered chemotherapy drugs, at equitable copayment levels as traditional treatments.
Representative Daley was awarded for her work last year around tobacco control policy. She worked to prevent the rollback of the recently implemented electronic cigarette tax. In 2015, 40.8 percent of Pennsylvania high school students had tried e-cigarettes. By preventing the roll back of the tax, Representatives Daley has had a positive impact on the health of Pennsylvania’s youth. We know that raising tobacco taxes is one of the most impactful ways to keep youth from starting tobacco.
“Lawmakers have heard from Pennsylvanians from across the state, and from all walks of life – cancer survivors, caregivers, youth advocates – about their personal commitment to fighting cancer through advocacy and public policy,” said Diane Phillips, director of government relations for ACS CAN in Pennsylvania. “ACS CAN hopes their message resonated with lawmakers, and the Pennsylvania legislature will commit to proven cancer fighting policies – including a strong, clean indoor air law, and fully funded cancer prevention and screening programs.”
About ACS CAN
ACS CAN, the nonprofit, nonpartisan advocacy affiliate of the American Cancer Society, supports evidence-based policy and legislative solutions designed to eliminate cancer as a major health problem. ACS CAN works to encourage elected officials and candidates to make cancer a top national priority. ACS CAN gives ordinary people extraordinary power to fight cancer with the training and tools they need to make their voices heard. For more information, visit fightcancer.org.
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