A surprising number of insured women skip yearly mammograms.

The American Cancer Society recommends that all women age 40 and over have a screening mammogram every year.  However, according to data presented at the 33^rd Annual CTRC-AACR San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium, only about half of eligible women with either employer-provided insurance or Medicare get regular mammograms.  Researchers reviewed medical claims between 2006 and 2009 from a database of over 12 million people.  The average yearly mammography rates were 47%, 54%, and 45% for women age 40-49 years, 50-64 years, and 65+ years, respectively.