JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. – April 3, 2017 – Cancer survivors, caretakers and health professionals will convene at the Capitol building Wednesday, April 5, to ask their legislators to protect and support statewide programs that drive down Missouri’s cancer rates and save lives.
Tobacco use kills more than 11,000 Missourians and costs the state more than $3 billion in health care bills each year, but the state ranks 50th in the nation in spending for tobacco cessation and prevention. With 63 percent of Missouri’s adults intending to quit in the next six months, woefully underfunded programs such as the Missouri Tobacco Quitline are in high demand. Volunteers at the American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network’s annual Day at the Capitol will ask lawmakers to maintain general revenue funding for tobacco cessation in House Bill 10 through the Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services.
Volunteers will also ask legislators to continue to support Show-Me Healthy Women. Now in its 25th year, this state program provides breast and cervical cancer screenings to Missouri’s low-income, uninsured and other medically underserved women. Nearly 90,000 women in the state qualify for this program.
For ACS CAN volunteers Allison Johnson and Keith Whittemore, this day is personal: Johnson was diagnosed with Ewing’s sarcoma at age 19 while at the University of Missouri and has now been cancer-free for two years. Whittemore was diagnosed in October 2008 with prostate cancer. After surgery and 37 radiation treatments, his PSA level has maintained itself at an undetectable level.
As part of the day’s activities, the Legislature is hosting “Suits and Sneakers Day,” where legislators, lobbyists and staff working at the Capitol are encouraged to wear sneakers to promote awareness of the fight against cancer. This helps highlight Coaches vs. Cancer, a nationwide collaboration between the American Cancer Society and the National Association of Basketball Coaches. The following head men’s basketball coaches will join ACS CAN on Wednesday: Columbia College Coach Bob Burchard, Westminster College Coach Matt Mitchell, and Lincoln University Coach John Moseley.
WHO:
Allison Johnson, childhood cancer survivor
Keith Whittemore, prostate cancer survivor
Stacy Reliford, Missouri ACS CAN government relations director
WHAT: American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network’s Day at the Capitol
WHERE: Missouri State Capitol
WHEN: Wednesday, April 5 from 9 a.m. – 1 p.m.
Time of note: Coaches vs. Cancer rally, noon-12:30 p.m. in House Hearing Room 3
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