Rep. Payne Pushes For Cancer Screening Bill In Name Of His Late Father

NEWARK, NJ — Colorectal cancer affects hundreds of thousands of Americans each year. And according to U.S. Rep. Donald Payne Jr. of New Jersey – who lost his father to the disease – people shouldn’t have to worry about how they’re going to pay for screenings that may save their lives one day.

Standing alongside health care leaders at Newark Beth Israel Medical Center last week, Payne – a Newark resident who represents the state’s 10th District – called on Congress to pass the Donald Payne Sr. Colorectal Cancer Detection Act. The legislation is named after his father, who died from colon cancer in 2012.

If it becomes law, the federal bill would require Medicare to cover FDA-approved blood-based screening tests to help Americans determine whether they are at risk for colorectal cancer.

The move would increase participation in colorectal cancer screening in under-screened communities of color, Payne said – ultimately saving lives.

According to the Newark Beth Israel Medical Center Colorectal Cancer Screening Taskforce, colon cancer is the second most-common cause of cancer-related death in men and women in the United States. Overall, the lifetime risk of developing colorectal cancer is about 1 in 23 for men and 1 in 25 for women. But routine testing can help prevent colon cancer or catch it at its earliest stage when it is most treatable, increasing survival rates.

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“Colorectal cancer is a disease that affects hundreds of thousands of Americans each year, and it’s something that hits incredibly close to home for me,” Payne said.

“We need to get more people tested for colorectal cancer because it has one of the highest recovery rates when detected early,” Payne said. “Many people do not want to schedule a colonoscopy because they fear the process or worry about how to pay for it, even though it is covered with private and public health insurance.”

“I lost my father, Donald M. Payne, Sr., to colorectal cancer almost 10 years ago,” the congressman said. “I want to make sure more families do not lose their fathers and loved ones to this dreaded disease.”

• See related article: Rep. Payne Makes Plea After Chadwick Boseman Dies: ‘Get Screened’

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