Oklahoma lawmaker battling breast cancer 'stunned' after Stitt vetoes bill requiring insurance to cover cancer screenings

OKLAHOMA CITY (KFOR) — Gov. Kevin Stitt is under fire after vetoing a bipartisan-supported bill that would have required insurance companies to cover certain screenings that can catch breast cancer early, a decision that has left the bill's author, who is battling breast cancer herself, heartbroken.

The bill, House Bill 1389, had rare, unanimous bipartisan support in the Oklahoma House of Representatives, and near-unanimous support in the Senate.

"It was amazing," said Rep. Melissa Provenzano (D-Tulsa).

Provenzano said her idea for the bill came about after she got a call from a single mom in her district.

She said the woman went in for a routine mammogram, but when her doctor saw something concerning and recommended a second diagnostic mammogram, her insurance wouldn't cover it.

"And it was $1,200," Provenzano said.

The woman told Provenzano something that stuck with her.

"I have to pay my electric after the food on the table, so I was just not going to get it," Provenzano said the woman told her.

After that, Provenzano teamed up with the Susan G. Komen Foundation to write the bill, which would require insurance companies to cover diagnostic mammograms at no cost to patients. Early detection, she said, could save countless lives.

It was around the time she filed the bill that Provenzano got news of her own: She had breast cancer.

"December 11th, I was diagnosed," Provenzano said. "And that just sort of rocks your world because it's fear of the unknown."

She has been undergoing chemotherapy, once a week, for the past 11 weeks, while the bill made its way through committees and onto the House floor, where it received unanimous approval on March 10.

"I turned around and it was just, you know, dots of pink," Provenzano said. "Everybody had something on. And it was moving and human. And it reminded me that we're humans first. And this is an apolitical thing at the end."

Even Republican lawmakers voiced strong support.

"Representative Provenzano — regardless of party lines, I guarantee it, I can speak for everyone… we all care about you," Rep. Steve Bashore (R-Miami) told Provenzano after the vote.

The bill sailed through the Senate and landed on Stitt's desk on Tuesday.

"I didn't expect a veto," Provenzano said.

But Stitt vetoed the bill Tuesday.

"I was stunned, to say the least, you know, because one in eight women in the United States are diagnosed every year," Provenzano said.

Stitt explained his decision in a video statement on Facebook Tuesday evening.

"It would have imposed new and costly insurance mandates on private health plans, which would actually raise premiums on Oklahoma families and businesses," Stitt said.

Provenzano said that reasoning is not backed by facts.

"When you have early detection, like I had access to, like all women deserve access to, you're saving dollars and saving money for the insurance companies on the back end," Provenzano said.

For Provenzano, it's hard not to take it personally.

"It feels personal," Provenzano said. "But I have to separate myself from that. I just want to say, did you read the bill? Did you understand what it was we're trying to do, and why this will save lives? And I just want to be able to have that conversation."

Provenzano said she still hasn't received a call from the governor.

As she heads into her final week of chemotherapy, Provenzano said she's confident the future will hold fewer vetoes—and more moments of unity.

"When we strip away the politics, really beautiful things happen," Provenzano said. "And I'll keep working on that."

Stitt was scheduled to hold his weekly press conference on Wednesday, where News 4 planned to ask him about his decision, but it was postponed until Thursday.