Candidates for the 11th Congressional District of New Jersey Go on the Record with Their Positions on Cancer Issues

TRENTON, NJ – October 17, 2018 – Both candidates for the 11^th Congressional District seat in New Jersey have publicly stated their positions on how, if elected, they would work to make cancer a national priority. As part of the Cancer Votes program, the American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network (ACS CAN) is contacting federal and state candidates across the country in a nationwide effort to encourage candidates to state their positions on laws and policies that help people fight cancer. This effort is part of ACS CAN’s national Cancer Votes campaign – the nation’s leading voter education program informing the public and candidates about the actions lawmakers should take to make fighting cancer a national priority.

“While we have made great progress against cancer, the disease still continues to kill more than 1,600 people a day in this country – 43 people a day here in New Jersey. Fighting cancer should be a national priority,” said ACS CAN volunteer Tom Delleart. “Lawmakers have the power to make decisions that directly impact the lives of cancer patients and their families, which is why it is important that the public understands where candidates stand on issues critical to fighting and preventing the disease.”

ACS CAN, the nonpartisan advocacy affiliate of the American Cancer Society, asked Mikie Sherrill and Jay Webber, both candidates in the 11^th Congressional District race to publicly state their positions on cancer research funding, ensuring access to affordable, quality health coverage and committing federal funding to eliminate death from cervical cancer worldwide.

Specifically, ACS CAN is asking candidates to answer the following questions:

• Cancer Research Funding: If elected, will you vote for annual increases in cancer research funding for the National Institutes of Health and the National Cancer Institute?
• Access to Health Care: If elected, will you oppose any bills that allow insurers to deny coverage or charge higher premiums to people with pre-existing conditions, reinstitute lifetime or annual caps, and/or weaken essential health benefits such as coverage for prescription drugs? 
• Eliminating Death from Cervical Cancer: If elected, will you support public-private efforts to share what we’ve developed in the U.S. to eliminate worldwide death from cervical cancer by supporting U.S. investment in global health funding for cervical cancer prevention, screening and treatment? 

 “As a cancer advocate, I know first-hand how the decisions made by elected officials can affect people with cancer and their families,” said Delleart. “That is why it is crucial for everyone to learn where the candidates stand on public policy issues that will help make cancer history. And no matter who wins, our volunteers pledge to work with them to support laws and policies that help people fight cancer.” 

It is estimated that in 2018 in New Jersey, there will be more than 53,000 people diagnosed with cancer and nearly 16,000 people will die from the disease. Nationwide, in 2018, more than 1.7 million people will be diagnosed with cancer and more than 600,000 will die from the disease.

Throughout the campaign season, volunteers across the country are informing candidates and the public about cancer issues in an effort to make cancer a national priority.

ACS CAN is strictly non-partisan and does not endorse, oppose, or contribute to any candidate or political party. For more information or to view the candidates’ response to the ACS CAN questionnaire, visit www.cancervotes.org.

ACS CAN, the nonprofit, nonpartisan advocacy affiliate of the American Cancer Society, supports evidence-based policy and legislative solutions designed to eliminate cancer as a major health problem. ACS CAN works to encourage elected officials and candidates to make cancer a top national priority. ACS CAN gives ordinary people extraordinary power to fight cancer with the training and tools they need to make their voices heard. For more information, visit www.fightcancer.org.
 

American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network, Inc.
156 W State St
Trenton, NJ 08608

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