Hero officer Crystal Griner throws out the first pitch at the women's softball game on Capitol Hill

Crystal Griner, The Capitol police officer was injured last week when a gunman opened fire on members of Congress during practice for a charity baseball game. Watch video of that great moment below.

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More Breast Cancers Diagnosed Early After "ObamaCare" Took Effect

MAYWOOD, Ill., June 23, 2017 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- A Loyola University Chicago study published this month has found an increase in the percentage of breast cancer patients who were diagnosed in early Stage 1, after the Affordable Care Act took effect.

The increases in Stage 1 diagnoses were higher among African American and Latina breast cancer patients, compared to white patients.

The study by Abigail Silva, PhD, MPH, and colleagues is published in the journal Cancer Epidemiology. Silva is an assistant professor in the Department of Public Health Sciences of Loyola University Chicago Stritch School of Medicine.

The Affordable Care Act eliminated copayments and other out-of-pocket costs for 45 preventive care services, including mammograms. This made mammograms more affordable, potentially leading to earlier diagnoses.

The earlier cancer is detected, the more effectively it can be treated. Diagnosing breast cancer when it is still in Stage 1 could improve the prognosis for thousands of women and reduce the need for invasive treatments such as chemotherapy for a substantial number of women, Silva and colleagues wrote.

Breast cancer is the most common cancer among women in the United States. The American Cancer Society estimates nearly 253,000 women will be diagnosed this year.

Compared to white women, Latinas are less likely to receive mammograms overall and African Americans are less likely to receive mammograms at recommended intervals. Out-of-pocket payments have been identified as a potential barrier to getting screening mammograms.

The retrospective study included 470,465 breast cancer patients between the ages of 50 and 74 who were covered by private insurance or Medicare and were newly diagnosed with Stage 1-4 cancer. Researchers examined two time periods: 2007-2009 (before the Affordable Care Act took effect) and 2011-2013 (after the act took effect). Researchers obtained data from the National Cancer Database, which includes approximately 70 percent of all newly diagnosed cancers in the United States from about 1,500 hospitals.

Overall, the percentage of breast cancers that were diagnosed at Stage 1 increased 3.6 percentage points, from 54.4 percent to 58.0 percent. There was a corresponding decrease in Stage 2 and Stage 3 diagnoses, while the proportion of Stage 4 cancers did not change. The shift toward Stage 1 breast cancer diagnoses increased by 3.2 percentage points among whites, 4.0 percentage points among African Americans and 4.1 percentage points among Latinas.

Compared to African Americans and Latinas, a higher percentage of white breast cancer patients are diagnosed at Stage 1. This disparity decreased following the Affordable Care Act, as minorities saw modestly higher improvements in Stage 1 diagnoses.

Researchers concluded that further studies to evaluate the impact of the Affordable Care Act on cancer outcomes and disparities "should be supported as they will help inform future policy recommendations."

The study was supported by grants from the National Institutes of Health and the Avon Foundation.

The study is titled "Potential impact of the Affordable Care Act's preventive services provision on breast cancer stage: A preliminary assessment."

In addition to Silva, other co-authors are Talar Markossian, PhD, MPH, of Loyola's Department of Public Health Sciences; Yamile Molina, PhD, of the University of Illinois School of Public Health, and Nazia Saiyed, MPH, of the Sinai Urban Health Institute.

New trailer for Thurgood Marshall movie: MARSHALL

Before MLK Jr. and Malcom X, there was Marshall.

Long before he sat on the United States Supreme Court or claimed victory in Brown v. Board of Education, Thurgood Marshall (Chadwick Boseman) was a young rabble-rousing attorney for the NAACP. The new motion picture, MARSHALL, is the true story of his greatest challenge in those early days – a fight he fought alongside attorney Sam Friedman (Josh Gad), a young lawyer with no experience in criminal law: the case of black chauffeur Joseph Spell (Sterling K. Brown), accused by his white employer, Eleanor Strubing (Kate Hudson), of sexual assault and attempted murder.

The film is directed by Reginald Hudlin release date is October 13, 2017. Watch the trailer below.

Congressional Black Caucus turns down Trump invitation

The Congressional Black Caucus turned down an invitation to meet with President Donald Trump, telling him Wednesday they believe their concerns are falling on "deaf ears" at the White House and his policies are devastating to the millions of Americans in the nation's black communities.

A White House spokeswoman said the development was "pretty disappointing" and pledged to arrange for individual members to meet one-on-one with Trump.

Caucus Chairman Cedric Richmond told Trump in a letter that his proposed budget, his efforts to dismantle Democrat Barack Obama's health care law and actions by Attorney General Jeff Sessions are detrimental to many African-Americans. Richmond said the caucus had expressed its concern several times, including in eight letters and a document, but the administration has failed to respond.

"The CBC, and the millions of people we represent, have a lot to lose under your administration," Richmond wrote. "I fail to see how a social gathering would benefit the policies we advocate for."

Trump and top members of the caucus met in March, but Richmond said there has been no follow-through on promises like helping black lawmakers meet with Trump's Cabinet.

Specifically, the caucus criticized Trump's budget proposal, which would cut money for Pell Grants for low-income college students and eliminate the Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program, which helps seniors and others on fixed incomes heat their homes.

The caucus singled out moves by Sessions on drug prosecutions and civil rights enforcement, and complained that the House GOP health care bill that Trump celebrated during a Rose Garden ceremony would "strip millions of black people of their health care."

Richmond's letter responded to an invitation from Trump aide Omarosa Manigault, chief spokeswoman for the White House Office of Public Liaison.

"It's pretty disappointing that Cedric Richmond has decided to go back on his commitment to meet with us," Manigault said in a telephone interview.

She said caucus members who were excluded from the March meeting have been reaching out to her personally, as well as to the White House legislative affairs team, seeking one-on-one meetings with Trump to discuss issues their constituents are concerned about.

"We will do that because they have made those requests and we will honor those requests," Manigault said. "That's not going to be deterred because of Cedric Richmond's political gamesmanship."

Rep. Gregory Meeks, D-N.Y., said caucus members want substance from the White House, not a social event.

"We want to talk and deal with issues that are of concern to the members of the Congressional Black Caucus, and we've not gotten any response," Meeks said. "My opinion and the opinion of most of just about all of the members of the CBC is that the board met (with Trump). They gave him substantive issues which we wanted to deal with and they have not been dealt with."

Meeks added, "Until we can deal with substance and issues what's the benefit of a meeting."

The Congressional Black Caucus was right not to meet with Trump again

Ferguson settles wrongful death lawsuit with the family of Michael Brown

The parents of black teenager Michael Brown and the city of Ferguson, Missouri, have settled a lawsuit over his fatal shooting by a white city police officer in 2014, according to a court document filed on Monday.

Brown's death triggered sometimes violent protests in Ferguson and around the United States, fueled by later police killings of unarmed black men in other cities. It also helped spark debate about racial bias in the U.S. justice system.

Terms of the wrongful death settlement between Ferguson and Brown's parents, Michael Brown Sr. and Lesley McSpadden, were not disclosed. U.S. District Judge E. Richard Webber approved the settlement and ordered it sealed.

"The gross settlement amount is fair and reasonable compensation for this wrongful death claim and is in the best interests of each plaintiff," Webber wrote.

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