Presidential Documents

Federal Register / Vol. 88, No. 212 / Friday, November 3, 2023 / Presidential Documents 75465 

Proclamation 10666 of October 31, 2023 

National Lung Cancer Awareness Month, 2023 

By the President of the United States of America 

A Proclamation 

This year, nearly 250,000 Americans will be diagnosed with lung cancer, 

the leading cause of cancer death in the United States. During National 

Lung Cancer Awareness Month, we honor the resilient people who have 

faced this diagnosis, the loved ones who rally to their side, and the medical 

professionals who do all they can to help patients survive and heal. We 

recommit to ending cancer as we know it by investing in new, affordable 

ways to prevent, detect, and treat this deadly disease. 

In recent years, improved treatments, as well as enhanced early detection, 

have brought us closer toward turning cancer diagnoses from death sentences 

into treatable diseases. However, challenges persist for patients and their 

families. It can be challenging to determine the best course of treatment. 

The treatment itself can be grueling. Medical bills can pile up. For some, 

progress is still too slow. This includes Black men, who are disproportionately likely to develop and die from lung cancer; people living in rural 

communities, where mortality rates remain stubbornly high; and women 

under 50 years old, who are diagnosed with lung cancer at higher rates 

than men of the same age. 

As a Nation, we must come together to change that. That is why the First 

Lady and I reignited the Cancer Moonshot, setting ambitious goals to cut 

the cancer death rate by at least half in the next 25 years and improve 

the experience of patients and families. As a first step, my Administration 

secured $2.5 billion in funding for the Advanced Research Projects Agency 

for Health (ARPA–H). The scientists, innovators, and public health professionals funded by ARPA–H are driving breakthroughs in preventing, detecting, and treating cancer and other deadly diseases. Throughout our history, 

the United States has led the world in scientific innovation and discovery. 

We will continue to do so on our way to ending cancer as we know 

it. 

My Administration is also investing in screening and early detection—services that are critical to diagnosing lung cancer in its beginning stages and 

saving lives. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention—along with 

other agencies, community health centers, and partners in the private sector— 

is providing early detection knowledge and support services to underserved 

communities. We remain committed to increasing lung cancer screening 

rates for those most at risk and encourage everyone to talk to their doctor 

about symptoms. 

There are additional steps each of us can take to reduce the impact of 

lung cancer in our own lives. For many, that starts with quitting smoking, 

the number one cause of lung cancer and the single-largest driver of cancer 

deaths in America. This year, our White House Smoking Cessation Forum 

brought together public health workers, health care providers, people living 

with cancer and their caregivers, and others to expand access to programs 

that help people who want to quit and ensure that these programs are 

accessible to everyone. Last year, the Food and Drug Administration proposed 

rules to prohibit menthol cigarettes and flavored cigars to help adults who 

are trying to quit smoking and to prevent children from becoming the 


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75466 Federal Register / Vol. 88, No. 212 / Friday, November 3, 2023 / Presidential Documents 

next generation of smokers. Help is available to those who want to quit 

smoking at www.BeTobaccoFree.gov or www.smokefree.gov or by calling 

877–44U–QUIT. 

Additionally, my Administration has taken significant steps to make cancer 

treatments affordable for everyone. Through the Inflation Reduction Act, 

out-of-pocket drug costs for seniors on Medicare will soon be capped at 

$2,000 per year—including expensive cancer drugs that sometimes cost several times that. We strengthened Medicaid and the Affordable Care Act 

(ACA), expanding health care coverage for millions of Americans and helping 

nearly 15 million people save an average of $800 per year on health insurance 

premiums. I remain committed to maintaining the accessibility of cancer 

care secured in the ACA, including requiring insurers to pay for cancer 

screenings and primary care visits and covering cancer survivors and others 

who have preexisting conditions. I signed the PACT Act into law—one 

of the most significant laws ever to help veterans exposed to toxic materials, 

some of whom develop lung cancer and other diseases. This law expands 

access to benefits and services to veterans, ensuring they have access to 

health care, free screenings, and benefits through the Department of Veterans 

Affairs. The law also provides access to survivor benefits for families of 

veterans who died due to a toxic-related illness. I was also proud to sign 

the Federal Firefighters Fairness Act, giving more than 10,000 firefighters 

and their families critical workers’ compensation and other benefits by making sure certain kinds of heart problems, lung disease, and cancers are 

presumed to be caused by the job. 

Cancer has touched nearly every family in America—including mine. During 

National Lung Cancer Awareness Month, the First Lady and I have one 

message to the Nation: There is hope. We see it in the extraordinary courage 

and strength of all who are facing this deadly disease and in the families 

and loved ones who support them. We see it in the researchers who are 

chasing new breakthroughs and the health care workers who care for their 

patients with compassion and skill. This month and every month, we must 

seize the urgency of this moment to find better solutions, treatments, and 

cures and to unite as one Nation to end cancer as we know it. 

NOW, THEREFORE, I, JOSEPH R. BIDEN JR., President of the United States 

of America, by virtue of the authority vested in me by the Constitution 

and the laws of the United States, do hereby proclaim November 2023 

as National Lung Cancer Awareness Month. I call upon the people of the 

United States to speak with their doctors and health care providers to 

learn more about lung cancer. I encourage citizens, government agencies, 

private businesses, nonprofit organizations, the media, and other interested 

groups to increase awareness about what Americans can do to prevent, 

detect, and treat lung cancer. 


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Federal Register / Vol. 88, No. 212 / Friday, November 3, 2023 / Presidential Documents 75467 

IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this thirty-first day 

of October, in the year of our Lord two thousand twenty-three, and of 

the Independence of the United States of America the two hundred and 

forty-eighth. 

[FR Doc. 2023–24501 

Filed 11–2–23; 8:45 am] 

Billing code 3395–F4–P 


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