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Ohio lawmakers don't often agree on much, but on one important issue there was bipartisan support, as House Bill 371 made some changes that could save women's lives. Reps. Sedrick Denson, D-Cincinnati, and Jean Schmidt, R-Loveland, introduced the bill, which focuses on early detection to beating cancer.
In this case, the new law will mean any woman, regardless of age, can get a yearly mammogram without having to worry about insurance, according to a report by WCMH.
"If she has dense breast tissue, we know it is very difficult to find tumors. She now has the opportunity to talk to her doctor about getting an MRI, an ultrasound or any future technologies available," Schmidt said. "This is life altering for every woman in the state of Ohio."
National Cancer Institute data shows female breast cancer represents 15% of new cancer cases.
But, again, screening can make all the difference if those cancers are caught early.
"What we realized is that every day we were losing a mother, a friend, a sister, someone we knew in our community," Denson said. "And what we found out is through updates (in) technology we could prevent that."
Lawmakers who came together to support HB 371 are to be commended for their efforts.