HHS Secretary Tommy G. Thompson today approved the first three states' proposals to expand Medicaid benefits to uninsured women who are diagnosed with breast or cervical cancer through a federal screening program.

Maryland, New Hampshire and West Virginia are the first three states to take advantage of the federal Breast and Cervical Cancer Prevention and Treatment Act (BCCPT) that was signed into law in October 2000. The law extends the full Medicaid benefit package to women who are screened and found to need treatment through the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's (CDC) National Breast and Cervical Cancer Early Detection Program. To qualify for the new program, women must be under age 65, not otherwise eligible for Medicaid and without creditable health care coverage.

Adoption of coverage for women under the BCCPT is optional for states. However, states that do offer the benefit will receive an enhanced matching rate for women who enroll.

"We are taking bold action today to ensure that women who are fighting breast and cervical cancer will get the help they need," Secretary Thompson said. "This new program helps give states the flexibility they need to best serve their citizens."

Since the CDC program began in 1990, more than 2.7 million breast and cervical cancer screening tests have been provided to more than 1.7 million women. Under the BCCPT law, these women may now be eligible for Medicaid benefits for the duration of their cancer treatment.