American Society of Plastic Surgeons
For Consumers
 

ASPS Efforts on BCPEA are Generating Record Support

One of ASPS's top federal legislative priorities, the Breast Cancer Patient Education Act (BCPEA - H.R.2540/S.1192) is poised to add its 23rd cosponsor in the U.S. House. In doing so, the BCPEA will surpass the total level of support it garnered during the entirety of the previous two year congressional session. This is noteworthy because the current congress is only a little past its first quarter.

The bill's momentum is a direct result of ASPS member advocacy during the Midwest/Southeast Regional Fly-In on June 2-3, 2015 and months of follow-up meetings conducted by Hart Health Strategies, ASPS's federal contract lobbying firm. The team at Hart Health Strategies has been executing a strategy developed with ASPS that focuses on House members of the Energy and Commerce Committee, which has jurisdiction over the bill. In the coming months,

ASPS will continue to advocate for the bill in the Senate and also turn its attention to House members who prioritize those issues directly impacted by the BCPEA – women's health, access to cancer-related services, and health disparities affecting minorities.

The Breast Cancer Patient Education Act, re-introduced in both the House and the Senate this spring, would require the Secretary of Health and Human Services to plan and implement an education campaign to inform breast cancer patients about the availability and coverage of breast reconstruction and other available alternatives post-mastectomy.