California SB 791 Veoted by Gov. Brown

[MCS]

YOU MUST TAKE AN ACTIVE PART IN POLITICS. IT AFFECTS ALL OF US

Gov Jerry Brown of California, USA, vetoed SB 791 which would have required medical providers to notify women if they have dense breast tissue, a fact that could obscure detection of breast cancer on a standard mammogram. The governor said it would create unnessary anxiety.
See the LA Times on 10-12-11

If the proposal passed, the women would have been advised that they would benefit from more screening.

I have dense breast tissue. My young daughters have dense breast tissue. Mammogram was not enough for me!

WHO THE HELL IS HE TO DETERMINE MY SCREENING METHODS TO SAVE MY LIFE ( NOT HIS!) AND MY DAUGHTERS. PARDON THE LANGUAGE BUT THIS SOB IS ONLY INTERESTED IN REDUCING MEDICAL COSTS. YOU'RE BETTER DEAD BECAUSE THEY COULD NOT SCREEN FOR CANCER THAN HAVE TO PAY FOR SCREENING SPECIALLY IN THE UPCOMING OBAMA CARE PROPOSALS

PLEASE LADIES, ESPECIALLY THOSE IN CALIFORNIA, WRITE TO "JERRY" OR TO SEN JOE SIMITIAN TO TRY TO REVERSE THIS BILL. IT COULD SAVE SOMEONE'S LIFE, GOR GOD'S SAKE

OR WRITE TO THE VARIOUS FOUNDATIONS
OR WRITE TO YOUR HOSPITAL ADMINISTRATORS
OR PASS WORD TO ALL YOU BC SISTERS SO THAT THEY KNOW THE INSULT OF THIS BILL
OR WRITE TO THE LA TIMES AT ANTHONY.YORK@LATIMES.COM - THE WRITER OF THE ARTICLE

JUST PASS IT ON-MAKE IT VIRAL. I DON'T CARE, THIS IS NOT FAIR AT ALL TO ALL OF THOSE WOMEN WHO IN THE FUTURE MAY BE AT RISK FOR THIS DECISION

SORRY. BUT NO MATTER WHAT LITTLE YOU DO, THE WORD IS TO PASS IT ON. I AM

[MCS]

I asked all my friends to forward the following message so that we are all informed

PLEASE,

All I need you to do is to pass this to everyone, I mean everyone, so that they are aware of the nonsense of the veto of SB791 by Governor Jerry Brown of California. You don't have to express political opinions or sides - nothing!. Just pass on to all in your directories.

YOU don't have to be from California. The key is to pass the information of inappropriate legislation and awareness.

Gov. Brown vetoed SB791, which would have required medical providers to notify women if they have dense breast tissue, which can obscure the detection of breast cancer on a standard mammogram. The women would have to be told about the benefit for further screening.

Gov Brown vetoed it because he felt it would cause unnecessary anxiety in patients

He said that it needs to be written more to educate than prescribe. He's concerned about the language used. The California senator that proposed it may be re writing and re introducing for next year

I believe that statistically, 1 in 8 women develop breast cancer and October is breast cancer awareness month

Cosider the following questions:

Do you rather know now that further screening is necessary or find out later that you have breast cancer and that an earlier diagnosis could have made you have Stage 1 rather than Stage 4?

Would you prefer to be anxious now or be desperate later?

What would you prefer your care provider to tell you?

What if there is something to be concerned about and the cancer has metastized before your next mammogram?

Think about yourself, your sisters, your sisters with BC, your daughters, your aunts, your mothers, your girlfriends, your spouses, your partners.

Think about the time lapse of a year

[bejuce]

I can't believe this happened! Thanks for posting.

[KG1993]

My mom was just diagnosed in Aug with HEr2+ mets so I had my first mammogram on Monday. Got the call today that they want to recheck a spot because I have dense breast tissue + family history. I live in Illinois and am thankful for the call. I am 36

[Pray]

Gods blessings to you KG. That is great to see you are staying on top of your health care!
I pray every thing will work out ok! God is good all of the time!

Your Friend,

Nancy

[sarah]

Hmm California is generally at the forefront of these kinds of things. It was among the first to insist that insurance companies pay for Mammos and prostate cancer (might even have been Jerry Brown the first time around) and the insurance companies said they'd leave California if it passed and California said, ok leave, so of course the insurance companies stayed - it's too lucrative. Have the insurance companies agreed to pay for this??? Is this a law in other states? or is California the first one to tackle it??? Maybe it should be a federal law??? Do you know what other states have this law? That would be helpful to know.

[sarah]

Here's one answer from a Californian, waiting to hear from an oncologist friend also:

"It's not the end of it he vetoed it because he wants the wording changed to as he put it ... "educate women more than they prescribe"...He said it should be very carefully crafted apparently he struggled to decide whether the information as it was written would be of help to women. So I guess it will be reworded and put up again.


Ps I actually believe most mammogram reports already do describe the density issue all of mine have ... I guess this would have made sure no one got lazy and left it out."

[radiant]

This is HORRIFYING. I sent Gov brown my story, advocating that he SIGN the bill - and he does this? He'd rather the state spend MILLIONS on chemo, and LOSS of taxes due to ltd, and increase Medicare simply because woman don't need to know that dense tissue can KILL them? Let alone, let innocent people like me suffer needlessly (as I have), because NO ONE told me my tissue was too dense too see sh*t? And, now I'm stage IV?

I'm FURIOUS, beyond.

[sarah]

Work on making it a federal law otherwise it won't have that great an effect. Here's the story, he's not against the idea, just the wording, frankly if you want to get mad at someone, the health insurance companies would be a better target:

http://www.latimes.com/health/la-me-...0,795464.story

Also the Senate luckily failed in a vote on a bill (S.1955) that would eliminate guaranteed insurance coverage for mammograms and other life-saving benefits for cancer screening and care, maybe look at who wanted that bill to pass?
I was told I had dense breasts and the problems back when I was a teenager - a decision made by my gynecologist.
Add the question to Breast Cancer Awareness: Ask if you have dense breasts! and what that means. We must take responsibility for our own health.
I would prefer a law to know that the water I drink and the food I eat is safe more than a law to know dense breast are a problem but don't worry, that law is coming back so no need to get upset, it will be passed. the wording will just change. So will you vote for Brown if he passes it in a changed form??? or are you just a Brown hater?

[radiant]

Sarah:

You were very, very fortunate to have a dr or clinician tell you at an early age about dense breasts. For the majority of us, no one ever mentioned this to us, ever. Even though for me, my mammogram readings said "Looks fine, but too dense too tell".

Sadly, I would get my annual letter that I was cleared off of this - no one ever bothered to apparently read the report or flag my dr that she should be reading this. It never occurred to me that I would need to read my own mammogram reports from the radiologist, since I'd never heard of that. I expected my dr to take care of me. that was a super, super wrong decision on my end.

Hopefully this clears it up. Had anyone, anywhere ( been checking since I was 36 due to such fybrocystic breasts) mentioned dense tissue as an issue, I would have been all over it.

- Kim

[sarah]

Hello Kim,
I'm sorry you were not informed, although being informed doesn't always mean something will be done about it - your insurance company may still not have paid for more testing.
I'm not against people being informed but I don't like California getting picked on as some evil state when it has always been at the forefront of preventative medicine and other important to quality of life issues, plus Brown ISN'T AGAINST the idea, only the wording - probably because it's too vague or doesn't have any follow through. That's why I suggest you push for a Federal law. Maybe write Boxer and Feinstein but I don't think anything that might potentially cost a cent will pass through congress now however many lives it might save. Facebook might be a good way to spread the word widely to others, maybe try that?
You have a right to be angry that your doctors and technicians didn't take into account that you had a potential problem and I'm sorry you are suffering those consequences.
Hopefully this new chemo treatment will make you NED. Try to enjoy life each day and your friends and family.
Cancer is a horrible, cruel disease.
Get well.
hugs and love
sarah