Group protests outside Sen. Bartolotta’s office over closed-door cancer meeting
A group of environmentalists held a lunchtime protest Tuesday outside a state senator’s office in Washington to oppose her participation in a closed-door meeting with health officials about cancer.
A dozen people turned out for the event organized by the Center for Coalfield Justice to complain about Sen. Camera Bartolotta’s plan to attend the meeting at an undisclosed location.
“They’re not being transparent, really,” said Heaven Sensky, a community organizer at the center.
She was surrounded by others carrying signs, one of which stated, “Cancer is a public concern,” outside Bartolotta’s office at 95 W. Beau St.
State Rep. Tim O’Neal, R-South Strabane, organized the meeting over concerns about a possible cluster of Ewing’s sarcoma cases in the Canonsburg area. The protest was underway as the state Department of Health announced that it had concluded no such cancer cluster existed in this area.
Bartolotta, R-Carroll, said the announcement would not result in the meeting being canceled.
“It’s just a listening meeting, and I agreed to go to it,” she said.
She said the decision to close the meeting to the public was made to protect the privacy rights of the patients and families who are dealing with cancer.
Bartolotta said she appreciated the protestors being passionate about this issue because “cancer hits every family.”
“We’re not signing policy in the meeting. We’re just seeking answers.”
O’Neal also invited local elected officials, state agencies and physicians at UMPC in Pittsburgh to the meeting.
Sensky said it’s unfair that elected officials will get to ask questions, but the public isn’t going to have the chance to ask theirs.
She said the issue is personal to her because she graduated from Canon-McMillan High School with Luke Blanock, who died in 2016 from the rare form of cancer.
“They need to schedule a meeting with us and let us ask our questions,” Sensky said.
“I think the fact that this meeting is being held in private even though they might have good intentions is really disappointing,” added Sarah Martik of California Borough, who joined the protest.