January is Cervical Health Awareness Month, and the state health department encourages women ages 21-74 across Colorado to talk to their health care providers about scheduling a Pap test.<\/p>\n
A Pap test is the first line of defense against cervical cancer. When cervical cancer is found early, more than 92% of women have a five-year survival rate.<\/p>\n
Every year in the U.S., about 13,000 women are diagnosed with cervical cancer, and about 4,250 women die of the disease. African American women and Latinas have a higher risk of developing cervical cancer, and African American women have a higher cervical cancer death rate.<\/p>\n
The Women\u2019s Wellness Connection offers free cervical cancer screening and diagnostic services to Colorado women ages 21 to 64 who have little or no health insurance and meet income requirements.<\/p>\n
To be eligible for the Women\u2019s Wellness Connection, women must earn less than 250% of the federal poverty level and have no health insurance or have health insurance with high deductibles or co-pays.<\/p>\n
For more information about where to find a provider, visit womenswellnessconnection.org<\/a> or call (866) 951-9355.<\/p>\n