Pennsylvania Budget Earmarks Funding for Breast and Cervical Cancer Treatment

State Sen. Allyson Schwartz (D) announced July 19 that Pennsylvania has earmarked $1.3 million in the 2001 state budget for breast and cervical cancer treatment for uninsured women, the Philadelphia Inquirer reports. The state money will "trigger" a $2.7 million federal grant through the Federal Breast and Cervical Cancer Prevention and Treatment Act, bringing the program's total funding to $4 million. In June, Schwartz proposed a bill that would have covered such treatment for uninsured women, but that legislation was never signed into law. Instead, the treatment funding was directly included in the "recently adopted" state budget. Eligibility for the program varies by income and family size; for example, the plan will cover single women who earn less than $21,471 annually and women with two children who earn less than $44,121. Schwartz noted that one million Pennsylvania women lack health insurance, while 12,000 women are diagnosed with breast cancer and 600 are diagnosed with cervical cancer in the state each year (Drutman, Philadelphia Inquirer, 7/20).