ATLANTA –Thanks to citizens purchasing Georgia’s Breast Cancer License Tags (BCLT), Horizons Community Solutions in Albany will reach out to at least 1,000 women in Dougherty and Terrell Counties to increase their awareness of the availabilty of no-cost breast cancer screening services for low income, unisured women. Further, Horizons will collaborate with area healthcare providers to recruit and navigate at least 300 women through timely breast cancer screening and follow-up. The funds will allow them to better coordinate services using a Mammography Coordinating Center.
“Nearly one third of women residing in Dougherty and Terrell Counties do not currently get age appropriate breast cancer screening,” says Chief Executive OfficerDiane Fletcher. “Our goal is to recruit uninsured women, refer them to local programs and ensure that they receive timely services.”
Twenty-two dollars ($22) of each Breast Cancer license tag purchased, or thirty-five ($35) of each tag renewed, funds the $300,000 in awards this year, administered by the Georgia Center for Oncology Research and Education (Georgia CORE) on behalf of the State Office of Rural Health in the Department of Community Health.
“While Georgia has increased breast cancer screening rates, not all women – particularly those without health insurance – receive appropriate screening or treatment,” says Angie Patterson, Vice President of Georgia CORE and a 16-year breast cancer survivor. “The work this grant money supports will help identify breast cancer at an earlier stage, making treatment more effective.”
For information on the Georgia BCLT program, go to www.georgiacancerinfo.org/breastcancertag or to purchase a BCLT click here.
The State Office of Rural Health (SORH), a part of the Department of Community Health, works to improve access to health care in rural and underserved areas and to reduce health status disparities. SORH provides funding for institutional framework that links small rural communities with State and Federal resources to help develop long-term solutions to rural health problems.
Georgia CORE is a public-private partnership designed to bring higher quality, better organized and more cost-effective care to cancer patients and survivors. The organization’s Board of Directors is composed of cancer experts from leading cancer centers and academic institutions. CORE’s network develops innovative tools and resources for cancer patients, survivors, caregivers, healthcare providers and researchers. Our collective vision is to contribute to the state’s distinction as a national leader in cancer care and research and a higher caliber of health care for all Georgians. CORE’s flagship resource, www.GeorgiaCancerInfo.org is the only statewide online information center of its kind, where details can be found on oncologists, clinical trials and treatment centers throughout the state.
Horizons Community Solutions (formerly the Cancer Coalition of South Georgia) has been improving health and reducing disparities in its 32-county service area for 15 years. Through collaboration with more than 200 diverse partners, Horizons strengthens communities and empowesr people to lead healthy and productive lives. Their Community Cancer Screening ProgramTM (CCSP) networks 16 primary care providers, hospitals, and cancer centers, in a model of care that facilitates navigation and cancer screening services with the goal of reducing cancer screening and early detection disparities among low-income, uninsured Southwest Georgians.