By Gina Morton
Geisinger Health Plan will not change any of the policies regarding mammograms and will continue to urge health plan members to undergo the procedure at age 40.
“The previous guidelines state 40 to 50 (years of age),” Amy Bowen, a spokeswoman for GHP, said Wednesday. “Our coverage covers a mammogram for anyone of any age. We will continue to provide mammograms for all ages.”
According to the Associated Press, the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force said most women don’t need mammograms in their 40s and should get one every two years starting at 50. For every 1,000 women screened, beginning at 40, the model suggested 0.7 deaths would be prevented, while 480 women would get a false positive result and 33 more would have unneeded biopsies.
Dr. John Turner, medical director at the Thyra M. Humphreys Center for Breast Health at Evangelical Community Hospital, Lewisburg, said Wednesday that when he heard the initial report, he felt defeated.
“Defeated and foolish,” he said, adding it was like the report said women were wasting their time in attempting to battle the disease. “I think women are too smart to (wait), though,” he said.
Pennsylvania law requires insurance agencies to provide mammograms to women 40 and older, and some have speculated that insurance agencies worried about costs are behind the new report. Bowen said that’s not the case for the Danville-based Geisinger Health Plan.
“We encourage members to get them,” she said. “If we are making reminders that they need to get one, we will go one step further and schedule the appointment for them if they want us to.”
So far this year, more than 17,000 mammograms have been covered for patients of the plan.
