CDC Study Calls for Improving Coverage, Data for Breast Cancer Screenings

Matthew Skoufalos | | Radiology Business | Business Intelligence
A new report released by the CDC on breast cancer screening among American women highlights lowering expenditures and improving insurance coverage as keys to improving mammography rates. Women should also understand their personal risk factors, the report said, such as family history and any particular hormonal irregularities. At the top, establishing national cancer screening registries and analyzing EHR data would create a better picture of those factors that contribute to the improved provision of preventive care. According to the study, which reported self-selected findings from some 277,000 respondants to a random telephone survey in 2010, those women least likely to have a mammogram include: 69 percent of those aged 40–49 years, 64 percent of native American women, 66 percent of all non-high-school graduates, 63 percent of women with an annual household income of less than $15,000, and 50 percent of all uninsured women. Women in Massachusetts were among the likeliest to have a mammogram, at 84.2 percent; women in Idaho were the least likely, at 63.7 percent. For a state-by-state breakdown, see this chart.
This article was updated on June 20.

Matthew Skoufalos

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