Breast cancer screening rates level over last ten years

July 9, 2010

In 2008, 81% of women had up-to-date screening mammograms as called for by the United States Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) recommendations (one in the past two years), according to a report by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).  The overall rate of screening mammography has remained the same over the past ten years, and indicates that 7 million women aged 50-74 years did not receive their recommended screening for breast cancer. 

The report found that the use of screening mammography varied by state, ranging from 72% in Nevada to almost 90% in Massachusetts. It also found that the use of screening mammography was lower among women who did not finish high school (72.6%), were American Indian/Alaska Natives (70.4%), had low-income (69.4%), and were uninsured (56.3%). The report notes that "the Patient Protection and Affordability Act should remove the financial barrier to mammography screening by expanding coverage and eliminating cost sharing in Medicare and private plans."

The CDC report was based on 2008 data from the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System, a state-based telephone survey of adults in the United States that included over 120,000 women aged 50-74 years.