State Rep. Kim Moser, a Republican from Taylor Mill, was appointed to the Lung Cancer Screening Advisory Committee, which will will oversee the implementation of a new statewide lung cancer screening program.
The program hopes to save thousands of lives through awareness and early detection. Kentucky currently leads the nation in both lung cancer diagnoses and deaths, a fact Moser said she knows all too well after losing her mother to the disease in 2017.
“We must build awareness and increase access to the importance of screenings and early detection,” Moser said. “I was proud to sponsor the legislation that created this program and ready to get to work as a member of the oversight committee.”
Moser sponsored House Bill 219 that not only established the advisory committee but created the Lung Cancer Screening Program. This program will seek ways to increase screenings, reduce morbidity and mortality, and lower the cost of treating lung cancer among citizens of the Commonwealth.
“The bill is named after my mother, Margaret Poore,” Moser said. “I know firsthand how devastating a lung cancer diagnosis can be. My family lived through it when my mother was diagnosed 8 years ago. This committee will be a crucial part in implementing the Lung Cancer Screening Program by providing recommendations to the Department of Public Health.”
The program is based on similar efforts by the Kentucky Colon Cancer Screening Program. Established in 2008, the colon cancer program has helped move the state’s colon cancer rates from 49th in the nation to 22nd.
“I appreciate Representative Moser’s willingness to tackle this role and her overall commitment to improving the health of Kentuckians across the state,” said House Speaker David Osborne, who appointed Moser. “While her work is far from over, she’s used her role as Chair of the House Health and Welfare Committee to craft effective, common sense policies.”