A Wall Street Journal article (2009), “A Breast Cancer Preview: The mammogram decision is a sign of cost control to come,” discusses the decision made by a government task force panel concerning the recommended age for breast cancer screening. Last week, it was announced that this task force has decided “women under the age of 50 and over the age of 75 without special risk factors no longer need screening” (WSJ, 2009).

Did new clinical evidence emerge to bring this issue to light? No.

So why did a new U.S. Preventative Services Task Force re-visit the previous “recommendation stating that women 40 and older schedule annual mammogram screenings to check for breast cancer,” which was made as recently as 2002? (WSJ, 2009) Many believe that health care was not the focus of concern for this investigation, but rather the focus was centered on health cost.

With clinical evidence supporting the importance of women under 50 being screened for breast cancer and the many lives that have been saved since the push to get women to screen for breast cancer, even as early as 35 years old; this announcement does not seem to align with the obvious benefits documented of this preventative practice. As for the women over 75, why is screening no longer recommended for this population? I guess the reasoning behind this decision is based upon the idea that women over the age of 75 should not be concerned with preventative medicine, as they have lived around the average life expectancy anyway (even though the average life expectancy for women is at least 80 years old). What are we saying to our aging population with decisions such as these?

So, if I understand this ruling correctly; the government has decided that cutting health care costs is valued over offering evidence-supported, preventative health care to a specific population of younger and older women. If a government-mandated health care bill passes regulating health care and insurance practices, I assume these insurance regulations will not cover mammograms for women under the age of 50 or over the age of 75 unless justified for specific pre-approved reasons.

What would be interesting to know is what specific reasons justify a mammogram for women who are not 50-75, according to the 16 member government task panel? When preventative medicine seems to be the best avenue in which to save money related to health care; why does Washington decide to cut out a preventative practice, known for saving the lives of many women every year, in an attempt to save on health care costs?

Reference:

Wall Street Journal. (2009, Nov. 19). Retrieved on November 19, 2009, at http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748704204304574543721253688720.html

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