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February
25, 2003 Flurry of Prevention Proposals From HHS
HHS' proposed FY2004 budget
contains millions of dollars for health prevention, including more money
for cancer screening and community efforts to fight the diabetes and obesity
epidemics. The $125 million "Steps to a Healthier U.S." initiative would fund 10 to 12 state and local projects that use "proven medical and public health strategies" to fight asthma, diabetes and obesity, said HHS Secretary Tommy Thompson. The goal of the initiative is to prevent 75,000 new cases of diabetes, 50,000 asthma-related hospitalizations, and to keep at least 100,000 Americans from becoming obese in the next fiscal year. "To stem the epidemic of preventable disease that threatens too many Americans, we need to move from a health care system that treats disease to one that avoids disease through wiser personal choices," Thompson said. The budget also requests $10 million for the CDC's National Breast and Cervical Cancer Detection Program. The program provides screening procedures like mammograms and Pap tests, along with post-screening procedures like biopsies, to low-income and minority women. HHS says the $10 million will support an additional 32,000 procedures next year. Childhood vaccinations get a triple booster shot in the new budget. Immunization initiatives include plans to expand the number of clinics that offer free vaccinations, including vaccines for tetanus and diphtheria, to uninsured children. The budget also requests $707 million to build a national stockpile of childhood vaccines between FY2003 and FY2006. You can download
the HHS FY2004 budget at http://www.dhhs.gov/budget/docbudget.htm. |
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