Illinois Gov. Bruce Rauner's proposed budget includes cuts to a program that allows uninsured women to receive access to cancer screenings.
Cuts to the Illinois Breast and Cervical Cancer Program could mean about 14,000 uninsured women will lose access to free cancer screenings.
Doris Garrett from “Susan G. Komen for the Cure” says 27,000 women in Illinois received screenings last year, but that number will plummet if Governor Bruce Rauner's proposal to cut nearly $10 million makes it into the budget.
"It's a significant concern for Illinois women as we try to make sure that all women have access to the necessary health screenings and services that can help save lives."
Pamela Luechtefeld says if it weren't for the Illinois Breast and Cervical Cancer Program, she wouldn't have detected her breast cancer.
"I would probably be ate up with cancer because they caught it in its second stage, so I wouldn't have been--I hadn't been to the doctor. The last time I had a mammogram was eight years ago."
Sixty-two-year-old Luechtefeld worked as a waitress in Decatur and didn't have insurance. She says when she found a lump on her breast last year, she wasn't planning on going to the doctor because she couldn't afford it.
Rauner proposed across-the-board cuts to many services. He says it’s necessary to have a balanced budget. His cuts would also hit Medicaid, which is how many uninsured women afford treatment after being diagnosed.