July is approaching (and fast!) which means that the dog days are here - and I'm not talking about the weather.

Appropriations has a full slate of activity scheduled for now through the end of July.  The House is scheduled to take on LHHS and Defense the last half of the month before the August break.  Both bills are important as they provide almost $400 million in research funding for prostate cancer.  The Senate (which is staying in session an extra week to Aug. 10) should be able to finish their work on those bills as well.

Obviously, our attention is divided this summer as health care reform starts to build up steam.  There are many challenges ahead.  Our primary focus is to make sure that men are armed with information and can get the care they need.

Among the hot topics for debate will be universal health care (and all of the little tangents that go with it).  One thing that is of primary concern to us is the fact that irregardless of who is paying for what or how men are covered - it will be of little comfort under the current policies of our federal government as set by the US Preventative Services Task Force which does not recommend screening for prostate cancer.

Government plays a large role in the information that is distributed about many diseases from research (NIH) to prevention and control (CDC) to treatments and drugs (FDA).  Recommendations like those from the USPSTF are detrimental to outreach and awareness, and a disservice to all men - but especially those men who are at highest risk for prostate cancer.

If we cannot reach those men (the ones at highest risk for prostate cancer), then mortality rates will not continue on their current declining track.

These issues are not the only ones we are watching, but unless we start taking action and standing up for ourselves, we will be lost in the shuffle of health care reform.