I 

113TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 2457 

To provide for a national public outreach and education campaign to raise 

public awareness of women’s preventive health. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

JUNE 20, 2013 

Mr. BERA of California (for himself, Mrs. NAPOLITANO, Ms. LEE of California, Ms. NORTON, Mr. RANGEL, Ms. MOORE, Ms. SLAUGHTER, Ms. 

SPEIER, Ms. SCHAKOWSKY, Mr. CONNOLLY, Mr. PAYNE, Ms. BROWNLEY

of California, Ms. TITUS, Mr. SWALWELL of California, Mrs. CAPPS, Mr. 

GRIJALVA, Mr. CONYERS, Mrs. CAROLYN B. MALONEY of New York, Ms. 

ROYBAL-ALLARD, Mr. ELLISON, Mr. LEVIN, Mr. CICILLINE, Ms. PINGREE of Maine, Ms. WILSON of Florida, Mr. LOWENTHAL, Mr. HONDA, 

Ms. HAHN, Ms. LINDA T. SA ́NCHEZ of California, Mr. FARR, Mr. SHERMAN, Mr. COSTA, Mrs. NEGRETE MCLEOD, Mr. PERLMUTTER, Ms. LOFGREN, Mr. CA ́RDENAS, and Mr. MCDERMOTT) introduced the following 

bill; which was referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce 

A BILL 

To provide for a national public outreach and education 

campaign to raise public awareness of women’s preventive health. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Women’s Preventive 

5 Health Awareness Campaign’’. 


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1 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 

2 Congress makes the following findings: 

3 (1) Well-woman visits are the foundation on 

4 which women’s preventive care is built. Such visits 

5 include not only specific screening tests, but also a 

6 medical history, physical examination, evaluation 

7 and counseling, and, as indicated, vaccinations. 

8 (2) Over the past 20 years, it has become clear 

9 that ‘‘one size does not fit all’’ when it comes to pre10 vention. Although a 30-year-old woman without risk 

11 factors for cervical cancer may only need a Pap test 

12 with HPV co-testing every 5 years, the same woman 

13 would need more frequent screening if she were in14 fected with HIV or had a history of cervical cancer 

15 precursors. 

16 (3) It is only after taking a medical history and 

17 evaluating and counseling a patient that a physician 

18 can make patient-specific recommendations for 

19 screening tests, vaccinations, preventive medications, 

20 and other preventive services. 

21 (4) Well-woman visits facilitate increased access 

22 to health care that is shown to identify chronic dis23 ease risk factors, promote well-being, and decrease 

24 the likelihood or delay the onset of a targeted dis25 ease or condition. 


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1 (5) Heart disease, stroke, and other cardio2 vascular diseases are the number one cause of death 

3 in American women, claiming over 400,000 lives 

4 each year, or nearly one death each minute. 

5 (6) Women are less likely than men to receive 

6 aggressive diagnosis and treatment for cardio7 vascular diseases. 

8 (7) Women are more likely than men to have 

9 forgone needed health care due to cost. 

10 (8) Between 2002 and 2010, screening mam11 mography rates among women in the United States 

12 who were 50 years of age to 64 years of age declined 

13 from about 79 percent to 73 percent. 

14 (9) In 2009, only 53 percent of 18- to 64-year15 olds in the United States reported having ever re16 ceived an HIV test. 

17 (10) The proportion of women in the United 

18 States 22 years of age to 30 years of age who re19 ported never having had a Pap test increased from 

20 6.6 percent in 2000 to 9.0 percent in 2010 despite 

21 current recommendations that they receive a Pap 

22 test every three years. 

23 (11) In 2007, 29.3 percent of women in the 

24 United States delivering a live birth did not receive 


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1 any prenatal care in the first trimester, even though 

2 first trimester prenatal care is recommended. 

3 (12) Among sexually active females in the 

4 United States who are 16 years of age to 20 years 

5 of age, only 52.7 percent of such females receiving 

6 benefits under the Medicaid program and 40.1 per7 cent of such females with health insurance coverage 

8 under commercial health insurance plans were 

9 screened for genital Chlamydia infections during the 

10 measurement year, as reported in 2008. A 2013 

11 analysis published by the Centers for Disease Con12 trol and Prevention found that for Chlamydia cases 

13 diagnosed in 2008 alone, the associated lifetime di14 rect medical costs amount to $516.7 million. 

15 (13) Almost half (49 percent) of the 6.7 million 

16 pregnancies in the United States each year (3.2 mil17 lion) are unintended. Multiple studies have shown 

18 that improved access to birth control significantly 

19 improves the health of women and their families, as 

20 it is directly linked to improved maternal and infant 

21 health outcomes. Women that plan their pregnancies 

22 are more likely to access prenatal care, improving 

23 their own health and the health of their children. 

24 (14) Between 2006 and 2010, one-third of all 

25 pregnancies were conceived within 18 months of a 


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1 previous birth, an interval that is potentially harmful 

2 to the health of the mother. 

3 (15) Improved access to family planning also 

4 saves money. For every $1.00 invested in family 

5 planning, taxpayers save nearly $4.00 in Medicaid6 related expenses. 

7 (16) During the 2011–2012 flu season, 53 per8 cent of pregnant women did not receive rec9 ommended vaccination against influenza. 

10 SEC. 3. WOMEN’S PREVENTIVE HEALTH AWARENESS CAM11 PAIGN. 

12 Part P of title III of the Public Health Service Act 

13 (42 U.S.C. 280g et al.) is amended by adding at the end 

14 the following new section: 

15 ‘‘SEC. 399V–6. WOMEN’S PREVENTIVE HEALTH AWARENESS 

16 CAMPAIGN. 

17 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall provide for 

18 the planning and implementation of a national public out19 reach and education campaign to raise public awareness, 

20 including provider awareness, of women’s preventive 

21 health. Such campaign shall include the media campaign 

22 under subsection (b) and the website under subsection (c) 

23 and shall provide for the dissemination of information 

24 that— 


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1 ‘‘(1) describes the guidelines for women’s pre2 ventive services, including the cervical cancer rec3 ommendations updated in 2012, by the United 

4 States Preventive Services Task Force, by the Amer5 ican College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists 

6 (ACOG), and by the American Cancer Society, the 

7 American Society for Colposcopy and Cervical Pa8 thology, and the American Society for Clinical Pa9 thology; 

10 ‘‘(2) promotes well-woman visits for health as11 sessments which include screenings, evaluations, 

12 counseling, immunizations, and prenatal visits, as 

13 appropriate; 

14 ‘‘(3) explains the women’s preventive services 

15 that are required under section 2713 to be covered 

16 without cost-sharing by a group health plan or a 

17 health insurance issuer offering group or individual 

18 health insurance coverage that is not a grand19 fathered plan (as defined in section 1251(e) of the 

20 Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act); and 

21 ‘‘(4) addresses health disparities in the area of 

22 women’s prevention. 

23 ‘‘(b) MEDIA CAMPAIGN.— 

24 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 1 year after 

25 the date of the enactment of this section, as part of 


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1 the campaign under subsection (a), the Secretary 

2 shall establish and implement a national media cam3 paign. 

4 ‘‘(2) REQUIREMENT OF CAMPAIGN.—The cam5 paign implemented under paragraph (1)— 

6 ‘‘(A) shall disseminate information about 

7 the updated guidelines for women’s preventive 

8 services described in subsection (a)(1), promote 

9 well-woman visits described in subsection 

10 (a)(2), and provide information on the women’s 

11 preventive services described in subsection 

12 (a)(3); and 

13 ‘‘(B) may include the use of television, 

14 radio, Internet, and other commercial mar15 keting venues. 

16 ‘‘(c) WEBSITE.—As part of the campaign under sub17 section (a), the Secretary shall, in consultation with pri18 vate sector experts or through contract with a private enti19 ty including a medical association or non-profit organiza20 tion, maintain and update an Internet website to provide 

21 information and resources about the updated guidelines 

22 for women’s preventive services described in subsection 

23 (a)(1), promote well-woman visits, and provide informa24 tion on the women’s preventive services described in sub25 section (a)(3). 


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1 ‘‘(d) FUNDING.—The Secretary may use, out of any 

2 funds otherwise made available to the Department of 

3 Health and Human Services, such sums as may be nec4 essary to carry out this section.’’. 

Æ 


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