Wasserman Schultz’s EARLY Act Passed by House

Washington, D.C. - Today, legislation led by U.S. Representatives Debbie Wasserman Schultz (FL-25), Mariannette Miller-Meeks (IA-01), Kathy Castor (FL-14), Brian Fitzpatrick (PA-01) Debbie Dingell (MI-06), and Diana Harshbarger (TN-01) to reauthorize and continue funding for the Breast Cancer Education and Awareness Requires Learning Young Act (EARLY) Act and the National Breast and Cervical Cancer Early Detection Program passed the House of Representatives in a 394 to 6 vote.

In the United States, the most common cancer diagnosed among women is breast cancer, where the average risk for developing it sometime in her life is about 1 in 8. More than 316,000 new diagnoses and over 42,000 deaths are expected from breast cancer in 2026. And with cases rising in younger women each year, the earlier it's caught, the better the chance to survive and overcome this devastating health challenge.

Key to early detection and treatment starts with education and awareness. This especially is true for younger women, and those at higher risk of death, like ethnic and racial populations who too often face an aggressive form of breast or cervical cancer and are not able to catch it until later.

"I know firsthand that early detection is our most powerful tool to beat cancer. It can be the difference between life and death, especially in combatting breast cancer, especially for those with inherited mutations," said Wasserman Schultz, who was diagnosed with breast cancer and the BRCA2 gene mutation at age 41 and after 15 months of surgery, has been cancer free for 18 years. "Reauthorizing the EARLY Act saves women's lives, and I'm proud to team up with Representatives Miller-Meeks, Castor, Fitzpatrick, Dingell, and Harshbarger, and Senators Klobuchar and Crapo to make sure those resources are out there."

The EARLY Act became law in 2010. Its success centers around authorizing three programs administered by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), designed to empower young and high-risk women to better focus their attention on this deadly disease.

This includes the Bring Your Brave effort, which amplifies stories of real women to raise awareness of breast cancer in young women between the ages 18-44, and encourages them to understand their risk and the signs and symptoms. It also funds the Young Breast Cancer Survivors Program, which provides grants to several non-profit organizations aimed at delivering supportive services and resources to increase patients' survival and improve their quality of life. And it offers continuing medical education (CME) courses for health care providers about breast cancer.

The bill also reauthorizes funding for the National Breast and Cervical Cancer Early Detection Program (NBCCEDP), which provides free or low-cost breast and cervical cancer screenings to uninsured and underinsured women. Since its inception, NBCCEDP has served over 6.6 million women, provided more than 17 million breast and cervical cancer screenings, and caught over 88,000 cases of invasive breast and cervical cancer.

Click here to read the full bill.

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