Lifetime and Millions of Its Viewers Applaud the Re-Introduction of the Bipartisan Breast Cancer Patient Protection Act

Lifetime and Millions of Its Viewers Applaud the Re-Introduction of the Bipartisan Breast Cancer Patient Protection Act

-- LifetimeTV.com petition in support of bill exceeds record-breaking 14+ million signatures --

WASHINGTON, Feb. 2 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- U.S. Senators Mary Landrieu (D-LA) and Olympia Snowe (R-ME) together with Congresswoman Rosa L. DeLauro (D-CT) renewed their support for breast cancer patients by reintroducing The Breast Cancer Patient Protection Act.

The bipartisan Breast Cancer Patient Protection Act would end the practice of "drive-through" mastectomies, where women are sometimes forced to leave the hospital sometimes just hours following their physically and emotionally difficult surgeries even if they and their doctors feel they are not ready to go home.

This act would ensure a minimum hospital stay of 48 hours to any woman following a mastectomy. It does not mandate a 48-hour hospital stay nor does it set 48 hours as a maximum amount of time a woman can stay in the hospital. It simply ensures that any decision in favor of a shorter or longer hospital stay will be made by the patient and her doctor.

As part of the Network's award-winning Stop Breast Cancer for Life advocacy campaign, LifetimeTV.com has collected more than 14 million petition signatures in support of this legislation. Lifetime launched the online petition in 1997, when it was first made aware of the problem of "drive- through" mastectomies by Representative DeLauro and by viewers.

The re-introduction follows a recent Capitol Hill press conference, part of the Network's Stop Breast Cancer for Life campaign, featuring Grammy(R) nominated singer/songwriter Jewel joined by Lifetime executives, Members of Congress, medical experts and breast cancer survivors to urge Congress to end this cruel practice. Additionally, Jewel appeared in special public service announcements driving viewers to sign the petition at LifetimeTV.com. These spots aired on Lifetime throughout the month of October, National Breast Cancer Awareness Month.

"Lifetime is proud to stand with Senators Snowe and Landrieu and Representative DeLauro on this important issue that allows women and doctors the ability to decide when women are ready to go home following major breast cancer surgery. Our viewers have been calling for this legislation to be passed for more than ten years - it's time for Congress to act," said Meredith Wagner, Executive Vice President, Lifetime Entertainment Services and founder of the network's Stop Breast Cancer for Life campaign.

"We are renewing our effort today to ensure that the millions of American women diagnosed with breast cancer each year know they will receive the care they need and deserve," said Senator Snowe. "Guaranteeing that women have the option of remaining in the hospital for up to 48 hours following a mastectomy provides both the patient and the doctor with peace of mind and the time to make appropriate treatment decisions. It is inexplicable that the Congress has not taken action to ensure this basic right to adequate treatment, and I urge my colleagues in both the House and the Senate to enact this legislation immediately."

"After being diagnosed with breast cancer, a woman will work with her doctor to determine if a mastectomy is the best option and should have her hospital stay determined by her doctor - not her insurance company. Yet many will be forced to leave the hospital when they are still in pain, groggy from anesthesia, and with drainage tubes that require professional attention because their HMO will not cover their stay," said Representative DeLauro. "I have worked on the Breast Cancer Patient Protection Act for an entire decade in this Congress, without a vote or hearing ever having been held. The time has come to pass this common-sense, compassionate legislation in support of women's health. When faced with a crisis like breast cancer, the last thing any woman should have to do is fight her insurance company for basic health care."

"In no civilized country in the world should a mastectomy be an outpatient procedure," Senator Landrieu said. "Medical decisions should be made by women and their doctors, not by nameless, faceless file clerks following nameless, faceless guidelines. I have heard far too many stories from women and their families about being forced to leave the hospital too soon after a mastectomy, and it is long past time that Congress recognizes the importance of allowing a woman to stay in the hospital after this very difficult, both physically and emotionally, experience."

Legislation to ban "drive-through" mastectomies is supported by American College of Surgeons, American Medical Association, Association of Women's Health, breastcancer.org, Obstetric and Neonatal Nurses, Families USA, Oncology Nursing Society, Society for Women's Health Research, The Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation and Y-Me National Breast Cancer Organization.

The Breast Cancer Patient Protection Act had 19 cosponsors in the U.S. Senate and 185 cosponsors in the U.S. House in the 109th Congress. The legislation was reintroduced with 13 cosponsors in the Senate and 127 cosponsors in the House.

LIFETIME is the leader in women's television and one of the top-rated basic cable television networks. A diverse, multi-media company, LIFETIME is committed to offering the highest quality entertainment and information programming, and advocating a wide range of issues affecting women and their families. LIFETIME Television, LMN, Lifetime Real Women, Lifetime Home Entertainment, and Lifetime Online (www.lifetimetv.com) are part of LIFETIME Entertainment Services, a 50/50 joint venture of The Hearst Corporation and The Walt Disney Company.

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Source: Lifetime

CONTACT: Geralyn Lucas of Lifetime, +1-212-424-7066, or
lucas@lifetimetv.com

Web site: http://www.lifetimetv.com/

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