Women's group lobbies lawmakers to fund Illinois Breast and Cervical Cancer Program

On May 12th, the Metropolitan Chicago Breast Cancer Task Force traveled to Springfield, Illinois to lobby lawmakers to fully fund the Illinois Breast and Cervical Cancer Program, which provides free mammograms and Pap testing for uninsured women aged 35 to 64.

According to Anne Marie Murphy, the task force's executive director, Gov. Bruce Rauner has proposed a 71 percent cut in funding to free screening and the complete elimination of the cancer treatment program for uninsured and underinsured women.

"We have a lot of women in our community, this is the only option they have to get the screenings," Murphy told NBC Chicago. "The budget shouldn't be balanced on women's lives."