Advocates are urging federal lawmakers to pass legislation and policy that would improve the lives of people with diabetes.
The Special Diabetes Program is a federal program that provides annual funding for Type 1 diabetes research. The program has funded significant research that’s led to new therapies and technologies, such as artificial pancreas systems. But without congressional action, the program will expire in September.
The Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation is meeting with Congress this week as a part of its 2023 Children's Congress to urge them to extend the program.
Aaron Turner Phifer, the senior director of health policy and advocacy at the JDRF, says the extension is not the only topic the organization will be bringing up with lawmakers.
“We're advocating for passage of the Insulin Act,” he said. “We feel good that there's bipartisan support on the fact that insulin affordability needs to be solved and we're looking forward to continued bipartisan support to find a solution.”
Mississippi has one of the worst rates of diabetes in the country. Over 330,000 people in the state have either Type 1 or Type 2 diabetes, the CDC reports. In 2020 and 2021, the Diabetes Foundation of Mississippi saw a more than 50% increase in children diagnosed with the condition.
Irena McClain, the associate director of the DFM, says her organization is very supportive of extending the program.
“We really are behind the reauthorization of the Special Diabetes program,” she said. “You look at all the discoveries that have been made since the program started in the past 25 years… I mean, look at the smart insulin pumps, the continuous glucose monitors, all the different types of insulin.”
More than 100 children with Type 1 diabetes will take part in the meeting on Capitol Hill.
