WCC Member Spotlights

Molly Collins, American Lung Association

Molly Collins, accepting her Policy Change Maker award at the 2024 Cancer Summit

Molly Collins is the Advocacy Director for Wisconsin and South Dakota at the American Lung Association, where she works to expand healthcare access, champion clean air for all, improve the quality of life for those with lung disease and their families, create a tobacco free future, and end lung cancer. The Lung Association works toward those goals through research, education, and advocacy.

Molly was recognized by the Wisconsin Cancer Collaborative with the Policy Change Maker Award in 2024. Molly agreed to tell us about her work for our Member Spotlight feature. Here is her story:

I spend plenty of time in the state capitol, but since this is the beginning of a new legislative session, I’m scheduling introductory meetings with all 40 of the newly elected legislators. I want to make sure they know about the Lung Association’s policy priorities, and how I can be a resource to them as they make law and policy that impacts us all.

I’m sort of a one-person department in Wisconsin, so I rely on a lot of organizational partners and volunteers for my work. We know that facts and figures don’t move elected officials as much as you might want – they need to hear the stories of people who are impacted by the problems that we want to address. I bring people with me to testify, or work with them to share their stories in the media or in a letter to their representatives. Last legislative session, I worked with partners and volunteers to defeat a bill that would have opened a loophole in our state’s clean indoor air law that prevents people from smoking tobacco indoors. It was very impactful when I was sharing my testimony in the committee hearing that I was also carrying with me the testimony of many others who would be harmed by allowing smoking indoors again. Unfortunately, I expect that bill might return this session, so we will be fighting that if it is reintroduced. If you hate the idea of returning to the smoky tobacco bars of fifteen years ago, please feel free to reach out and work with me on that!

The Lung Association has several other advocacy priorities, but one other big area is extending Medicaid coverage for postpartum people from the two months they receive to 12 months. We also expect to be doing defensive work to ensure that people who need Medicaid coverage can access it.

I work closely with the Wisconsin Cancer Collaborative on their policy committee, because that is a group of people who care about so many of the same issues as I do. People who want to stay connected to my work might want to sign up for our Lung Action Network to get Wisconsin alerts. You can also just send me an email to Molly.Collins@Lung.org. I’m quite passionate about connecting individuals to the levers of power and helping them to advocate for meaningful change, so I’m always up for a chat about whatever state policy issue you are thinking about!

Wisconsin Department of Health Services Radon Program

Color coded map of the 17 Radon Information Centers covering all of Wisconsin (DHS, 2025).

The Wisconsin Department of Health Services Radon Program leads statewide outreach efforts to educate the residents of Wisconsin on the health risks associated with indoor radon gas. Their goal is to minimize and prevent radon-related lung cancer in Wisconsin.

The Radon Program has long been a member of the Wisconsin Cancer Collaborative. They are the first organization to be featured in our new Member Spotlight, helping us know more about our fellow associates and the work they do to make progress against cancer in Wisconsin.

They encourage radon testing and mitigation among homeowners, business owners, renters, schools, and childcare centers; offer expert consultation on matters pertaining to radon and health; and provide leadership and financial support for radon outreach and education across Wisconsin.

The Radon Program has led radon outreach work in Wisconsin since 1989, and funds 17 regional Radon Information Centers (RICs) throughout the state. Each RIC has professionally trained staff in radon topics such as radon health risks and radon measurement. RICs offer radon test kits, usually at discounted prices, for residents in their region. Find your regional RIC by searching your county at https://www.dhs.wisconsin.gov/radon/infocenters.htm.

One of the challenges of radon work is that people don’t easily recognize radon as a health risk. Because you can't see radon gas or smell it, many people don't consider it a health risk until it's too late. While radon exposure doesn't cause health problems in the short-term, it can cause lung cancer after years of inhalation exposure at high levels. The radioactive particles from radon can damage lung cells over time, to the point where the cells become cancerous.

Radon testing generally increases during the winter, when doors and windows remain closed and provide optimal conditions for testing protocols. Additionally, National Radon Action Month is every January, and many regional RICs run awareness campaigns and offer free or discounted test kits to homeowners.