Women often think of mammography as breast cancer prevention. But having an annual mammogram will not keep a woman from getting breast cancer. It can, however, increase a woman’s chances of finding breast cancer early.
Mammography uses low-dose x-rays to take pictures of the breast. Learn more about mammography and see how the procedure is performed here.
The Affordable Care Act Preventive Health Services program requires that all marketplace health plans (and many other plans) cover mammography screening for women without charging a copayment or coinsurance. This is true even if a woman has not met her yearly deductible.
Don’t have health insurance? These programs provide free mammography services to low-income, uninsured, and underinsured women:
- CDC National Breast and Cervical Cancer Screening Program
- National Breast Cancer Foundation’s National Mammography Program
Information about Medicare coverage and a search tool that can help you find an FDA-approved mammography center is available on the FDA’s database for Mammography Facilities.