Women living without disease or disability and not dying of breast cancer, cervical cancer, or heart disease.
The Iowa Care for Yourself Program promotes and protects the health of Iowa women by increasing the number of 50 - 64 year olds who are screened for breast cancer, cervical cancer and heart disease risk factors.
In 1990, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) established the first national chronic disease prevention program sponsored by the federal government. Through the National Breast and Cervical Cancer Early Detection Program (NBCCEDP), the CDC funds breast and cervical cancer screening activities in all 50 states, the District of Columbia, 5 U.S. territories, and 12 American Indian/Alaska Native organizations.
These programs help low-income, uninsured and underinsured women gain access to breast and cervical cancer screening and diagnostic services. These services include:
• Clinical breast examinations
• Mammograms
• Pap tests
• Pelvic examinations
• Diagnostic testing if results are abnormal
• Referrals to treatment
The NBCCEDP reported in 2009 that, since 1991 more than 8.0 million screening exams have been provided to more than 3.3 million underserved women, including older women, women with low incomes, and women of racial and ethnic minority groups.
The Iowa Breast and Cervical Cancer Early Detection Program (IA BCCEDP) was initially funded in 1993 and screening began in August 1995. Women must meet age and income guidelines to be eligible for the program. IA BCCEDP focus is on serving women aged 50 to 64 years. Women of other ages may be eligible for some services. Since 1995 the IA BCCEDP has screened over 35,000 underserved women.
In 1993, Congress added legislation to provide heart disease risk services to the law that established CDC's NBCCEDP. Heart disease, stroke and other diseases can be found and treated through health screenings. CDC's Well-Integrated Screening and Evaluation for Women Across the Nation (WISEWOMAN) Program helps low-income, uninsured and underinsured women gain access to heart disease and stroke risk factor screening. These services include:
• Blood pressure measurements
• Fasting blood lipids
• Diabetes
• Height and weight to determine Body Mass Index
• Tobacco use, and
• Referral to treatment
CDC's WISEWOMAN program provides cardiovascular disease risk factor screenings, healthy lifestyle programs, and health care referral services to uninsured and underinsured women aged 40-64 years. To be eligible, participants must first be enrolled in CDC's National Breast and Cervical Cancer Early Detection Program. CDC currently funds 21 WISEWOMAN programs, operating in 19 states and 2 tribal organizations. Since the program began screening in 1995, 84,000 women have received WISEWOMAN services.
Iowa's WISEWOMAN Program was initially funded in 2001 as a research study, and began screening a limited number of BCCEDP participants for heart disease risk factors in 2003. Participants in designated intervention sites also received a lifestyle intervention. In fall 2008, the WISEWOMAN Program stopped collecting research data and became a program, providing screening and a lifestyle intervention to about 2,200 BCCEDP participants each year statewide.
On October 24, 2000, the Breast and Cervical Cancer Prevention and Treatment Act was signed into law. Within a year, Iowa enacted its state plan. The plan enables women under age 65, enrolled in the National BCCEDP with no creditable insurance coverage and ineligible for any other Medicaid coverage group, to receive treatment and health care reimbursed by Iowa Medicaid. If available, a participant may receive treatment in her local area.
The IA Care for Yourself Program (IA CFY) is a decentralized program combining IA BCCEDP and IA WISEWOMAN services into one statewide program. Each local program operates individually and uniquely, but cooperatively, with other local programs. Today, 26 local programs consisting of one to six sites provide services to women in all 99 Iowa counties. County Boards of Health designate a not-for-profit agency to implement and operate each local program. Local program responsibilities include:
• Outreach
• Public education
• Marketing
• Participant recruitment
• Eligibility determination
• Enrollment
• Follow-up tracking
• Case management
• Documentation
• Data reporting
• Local program administration
IA CFY services emphasize:
• Comprehensive breast, cervical and heart disease risk screening for the target population
• Case management for participants requiring diagnostic services or treatment
• Lifestyle intervention and risk reduction education
• Rescreening women previously seen by the program
• Reaching women never or rarely screened (greater than five years) for cervical cancer
• Reducing over-screening for cervical cancer
For more information, contact your local Care for Yourself, program or call (800) 369-2229 or (800) 735-2942 (V/TTY).
You may also use the "Contact Us" page to submit questions online or write to us at:
Iowa Care for Yourself Program
Breast and Cervical Cancer Early Detection/WISEWOMAN
Iowa Department of Public Health
Lucas State Office Building
321 East 12th Street
Des Moines, IA 50319-0075
