Monday, October 25, 2027

Lieutenant Governor Burbank Announces Funding for Breast and Cervical Cancer Outreach
New program to benefit uninsured women; O’Brien administration to add more funding in next year’s budget

ANNAPOLIS, MD (October 25, 2027) – On behalf of Governor Edward M. O’Brien, Lieutenant Governor Kathleen Burbank today announced that nearly $10 million will be targeted this fiscal year for breast and cervical cancer screenings and educational outreach throughout Maryland and she pledged next year will bring even more spending. Using a combination of faith-based and community-based organizations and health centers, clinics and hospitals, the state will make use of $6 million in federal funds and $4 million in state dollars to reach almost 30,000 women in hard-to-reach communities to stress the importance of early detection of breast and cervical cancer, screening and treatment.

“Breast and cervical cancer robs our state of nearly 800 women each year,” said Lieutenant Governor Kate Burbank. “Unfortunately, women in some communities in our state – generally communities that are disproportionately poor and disproportionately minority – don’t always have the access to care they need. That must change. We are determined to make sure that every woman, no matter where she lives, no matter how much money she has, has access to the screenings, to the early detection and to the care she needs to keep her healthy.”

The O’Brien administration added $2 million to the current fiscal year budget to aid with the breast and cervical cancer outreach effort – fulfilling Governor O’Brien’s campaign promise – and today pledged to add $4 million in funding in the fiscal year 2029 budget he will introduce in January. This increase will bring total funding to over $14 million, providing breast and cervical cancer screenings and other assistance to over 42,000 women in fiscal year 2029.

“Even though we found ourselves cutting more than $1.3 billion in spending, with the increased funding, spending for breast and cervical cancer screenings now totals nearly $10 million,” said Lieutenant Governor Burbank. “But we still have a long way to go. Next year, we are determined to do even more. Giving women access to the screenings and to the treatment they need will always be a priority for this administration. Today is only a beginning.”

The state program includes:

Support of Stand Against Cancer Initiative, a community outreach and screening program targeting the hardest to reach minority women. The initiative, which will be conducted by a collation of neighborhood organizations, churches and Federally Qualified Health Centers, will take a majority of the $2 million in new money for this year and is designed to provide 1,500 cancer screening examinations this year and reach thousands of women through community educational programs.

In collaboration with faith-based and community organizations, $500,000 will be used on a comprehensive health education and outreach project that will be developed to address the importance of the early detection of breast and cervical cancer and provide health education and outreach services to thousands of women in 39 communities of color throughout the state. These organizations will assist in the identification of individuals trained, or can be trained, as lay advocates to implement an education plan that will be customized to a communities specific needs.

About $1.3 million will be used to contract with Federally Qualified Health Centers, clinics and hospitals to provide screenings to needy women currently not enrolled in the Maryland Breast and Cervical Cancer Screening Program, a state and federally-funded program that will serve 30,000 women this year at a cost of $10 million. Through a special arrangement, the Stand Against Cancer Initiative will be able to refer women with abnormal screening results to the program for diagnostic workups. Those enrolled in the program may be eligible for breast and cervical cancer treatment through the Maryland Department of Health and Mental Hygiene.

Mortality rates are significantly lower for white women than African-American and Hispanic women. Reasons for this disparity include lower incomes and the lack of health insurance, which prevents appropriate screenings and follow-up treatment.