2018-10-11 Thu

USPS is promoting their Breast Cancer Research Stamps during Breast Cancer Awareness Month which is observed in October. The stamp features the texts “Fund the Fight” and “Find a Cure” along with a depiction of Goddess of the hunt by Whitney Sherman of Baltimore.

The Breast Cancer Research Stamp was designed by Ethel Kessler of Bethesda, Maryland. It was the first semipostal stamp in U.S. history and was later issued to raise funds for breast cancer research in 1997. The sale of these stamps will continue till 31st December 2019 as per a new legislation signed by President Obama in 2015.

The 65-cent self-adhesive semipostal stamps are released in sheets of 20. Costs incurred by USPS for issuing and marketing these stamps would be deducted from the funds collected. 70 percent of the remaining funds would be donated to the National Institutes of Health while 30 percent will be donated to the Medical Research Program at the Department of Defense. Over 1 billion stamps have been sold so far, amounting to $87.8 million for breast cancer research.

In 2011, the USPS released Save Vanishing Species semipostal stamps, which have raised over $5.2 million to help protect threatened species. In 2017, Alzheimer’s semipostal stamps were released which have raised over $524,000 to fund Alzheimer’s research.

The USPS will be promoting the Breast Cancer Research stamp in October, the Alzheimer’s stamp in November and Save the Vanishing Species in December. The sale of postage, products and services funds USPS’s operations without charging any extra taxes.

Image Courtesy: USPS