A bill to help prevent cervical cancer is sitting in the Ohio House of Representatives.
The bipartisan bill, introduced by Rep. Catherine Barrett, D-Cincinnati, will require insurance companies to cover the cost of the new technology screening for cervical cancer that includes a human papilloma virus (HPV) DNA test. This testing meets the newest guidelines from the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists.
This is a disease that women should not die from because there is a preventable screening available
Barrett said.
According to the American Cancer Society, 320 women in Ohio will be diagnosed with cervical cancer this year.
According to the Ohio Cancer Incidence Surveillance System, from 1996 to 2000, there were 548 new cervical cancer cases and Athens County had 13.4 cervical cancer cases per year per every 100,000 women.
On average, a woman gets a Pap smear every year. However, the American Cancer Society reports 40 percent of new cervical cancer cases are in women who had normal Pap results in the previous five years.
Barrett said the new technology screening -HPV DNA test -along with a Pap smear increases the chances of detecting cervical cancer and preventing it.
The American Cancer Society said that HPV is the cause of cervical cancer. People at risk for HPV are those who have had unprotected sex, sex with multiple partners or sex with a person who has had sex with multiple partners.
The HPV DNA test is used for women ages 30 and over or women who receive abnormal pap results, and examines the DNA of cervical cells to determine if they are cancerous.
Barrett said that she plans to meet with insurance companies to show them the cost benefit analysis of paying for the HPV DNA test.
It would save insurance companies money because it would be less to pay for a screening every five years versus paying for cervical cancer treatment Barrett said.
Cigna Healthcare and Anthem Blue Cross Blue Shield are insurance companies that cover costs for the HPV DNA test.
The Ohio Department of Health provides screening and treatment through its Breast and Cervical Cancer Prevention Project for women who are uninsured or underinsured. The project is funded by Centers for Disease Control and has funding for 11,500 women per year.
The Ohio Department of Job and Family Services also offers assistance to women with breast and cervical cancer.
Carmen Stewart, spokeswoman for the department, said that in 2002 Medicaid was expanded to include certain uninsured women with breast and cervical cancer.
Criteria for aid include living in a home with an income less than 200 percent below the poverty level and being age 40 to 65.
Hudson Health Center does Pap smears that test for chlamydia and gonorrhea. Female students are required to attend a two-hour sexual health seminar prior to having a Pap smear.
Char Kopchick, director of Health Education and Wellness, said, If there are any indications of abnormalities (from the Pap smear) they will screen for HPV.
A Pap smear at Hudson Health Center costs $65, and the HPV testing costs an additional $110. Patients receive results in seven to fourteen days, depending on what day the test samples are sent out. Hudson sends the samples to LabCorp in Columbus.
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LaToya Thompson
