Suozzi Visits India Home; Receives Update on Funding He Secured for South Asian Colon Cancer Health Initiative Project

Glen Cove, NY - On Wednesday, Congressman Tom Suozzi (D - Nassau, Queens) visited India Home in Jamaica to receive an update on the South Asian Colon Cancer Health Initiative (SACCHI) project, funding for which he secured in 2022. 

Suozzi was instrumental in securing $500,000 in grant funding for the SACCHI project, which India Home led. This initiative aims to address health disparities and reduce cancer cases among South Asian seniors in NY-03.

"South Asians are disproportionately affected by higher rates of colon cancer, especially among seniors in our community," said Suozzi. "The educational and outreach efforts of India Home to bridge these disparities, facilitate screening, and ultimately reduce colon cancer rates among South Asian seniors are unparalleled."

The SACCHI project highlights the significance of preventive measures for colon cancer. Suozzi's grant funding has enabled the creation of educational videos and brochures in South Asian languages, interviews with healthcare experts, physician engagement events, peer support, facilitation of testing and screening procedures, as well as pre- and post-intervention evaluations.

The India Home funding for the SACCHI project, which operated from July 2023 to July 2024, was one of 15 community-funded projects totaling nearly $14 million that Suozzi championed and helped secure in late 2022 for Fiscal Year 2023.

In July, Suozzi announced that congressional appropriators had included language for 15 local projects in NY-03, totaling more than $15 million, in their first draft of the 2025 spending bills. The funding would cover new equipment for the Glen Cove Police Department, new systems for clean drinking water, new pump stations to improve sewage infrastructure, and more.

"One of my top priorities in Congress has been to advocate for New York and make sure that my constituents in Long Island and Queens receive their fair share," said Suozzi. "This summer, I announced that as part of Congress's bipartisan funding process, over $15 million was preliminarily allocated to return to New York's Third Congressional District. I will keep working to bring back these and other tax dollars to our community."

Congress continues to consider FY25 appropriations legislation after extending the expiration of current funding levels last month until December 20, 2024.

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