Cancer prevention advocates fight New Hamopshire budget cuts

Concord, NH

The American Cancer Society and other groups are asking Gov. John Lynch to preserve funding for smoking cessation and cancer screening programs.

The state had planned to spend $2 million on the programs, but that total was trimmed to $250,000 as part of the governor's broad budget cuts. The cancer society is fighting back with ads arguing that this is no time to retreat in the fight against cancer.

The bulk of the money was supposed to be used for tobacco prevention and cessation programs. The plan also called for establishing a free colorectal cancer screening program for people with little or no health insurance coverage and expanding a similar screening program for breast and cervical cancers.

Lynch has made $50 million in cuts across the state budget after determining that state revenue would not meet his original budget predictions. Though the cuts affect programs in the 2008 fiscal year, estimates suggest the shortfall for the next fiscal year may be more significant. Advocates are concerned that $4 million funding slated for next year may suffer a similar fate.

"It was a little disheartening to see that what can be given can be taken away really suddenly," said Peter Davies, a spokesman for the cancer society.

A spokesman for Lynch says the governor supports the cancer programs but faced tough choices in trying to balance the books.

"It's a good plan, a good program," said Colin Manning. "It was new money included in the budget, and unfortunately, we're faced with this economic downturn that's impacting revenues."

But Peter Ames, the cancer society's director of government relations, said New Hampshire is going to have to deal with cancer a lot longer than it will deal with a short-term budget shortfall.

"This was really a long-term investment in the state," he said.

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