More low-income women get mammograms in Medicaid expansion states, study says
Women were 25 percent more likely to get screened for breast cancer, according to the Radiological Society of North America
Women in Medicaid expansion states are far more likely to get screened for breast cancer, according to a new study by the Radiological Society of North America, which released the results at its annual meeting on Monday.
The study's authors say that even though mammograms greatly improve breast cancer detection, low-income populations were being left out, according to data from the 2008 and 2012 Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System.
In 2008, there appeared to be little difference in the likelihood of low-income women in non-expansion states getting screened versus expansion states. But after early expander states like California, Connecticut, Minnesota, New Jersey and Washington expanded their Medicaid programs under the Affordable Care Act, that picture changed dramatically.
The study shows that in 2012, after those states expanded Medicaid programs, low-income women in expansion states were 25 percent more likely to get screened for breast cancer than those in non-expansion states compared to 2008.
"Understanding the impact of Medicaid expansion on breast cancer screening rates in early expander states can give valuable insights that can be very useful to both state and federal policymakers when considering key health policy," said the study's lead author, Soudabeh Fazeli Dehkordy, MD, from St. John Providence Hospital in Southfield, Michigan.
Right now, 23 states have expanded their Medicaid programs with an additional 6 states looking at alternatives. The ACA created the option for states to expand Medicaid to people under 65 years of age living at up to 133 percent of the federal poverty level, but many states, mainly governed by Republicans, chose not to.
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"Adoption of Medicaid expansion by more states can result in considerable improvement of disparities in breast cancer screening, leading to better health outcomes for all women across the United States," Dehkordy said.
The news comes after the American Cancer Society updated its guidance for mammogram screenings. The organization is now advocating that women who are at average risk for breast cancer start annual mammograms at age 45 and continue until age 54, then reduce screening frequency to once every two years. Previous guidelines suggested women should start to get screenings at 40 years old.
