U.S. Senator Susan Collins has sent a letter to the Chairman and Ranking Member of the Senate Subcommittee on Labor-HHS Appropriations requesting $69,157,000 for the Division of Diabetes Translation (DDT) at the National Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
The Division of Diabetes Translation at the CDC is the primary government vehicle focusing on the prevention and management of diabetes. The Division translates medical research into practices and programs that can be used in local communities to help those at-risk for diabetes prevent and delay the onset of the disease. Currently, the Division only has the resources to fund 28 of the 50 state diabetes prevention and control programs at a “basic” level, with an average grant of about $725,000. The remaining 22 states, including Maine, receive “capacity building” grants, with an average grant of about $270,000 – just about a third the size.
“As the founder and Co-Chair of the Senate Diabetes Caucus, I have learned a lot about this disease and the difficulties and heartbreak that it causes for so many American families. Diabetes is a life-long condition that affects people of every age, race and nationality. It is the leading cause of kidney failure, blindness in adults, and amputations not related to injury,” said Senator Collins. “I strongly believe that increased funding for the Division of Diabetes Translation will allow more of those at risk for diabetes to delay—and hopefully prevent—the onset of this tragic disease.”
Senator Collins’ letter was cosigned by a bipartisan group of 12 senators.
A Full Text of the Letter Follows:
Dear Senator Harkin and Senator Specter:
As you begin the conference on the FY ‘08 Labor, Health and Human Services, Education and Related Agencies Appropriations bill, we write to ask that you provide $69,157,000 for the Division of Diabetes Translation (DDT) at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). This is the level of funding that was included in the appropriations bill passed by the House of Representatives earlier this year.
Diabetes is a costly and devastating disease. Nearly 21 million Americans are living with diabetes, and one in three American children born today will develop the disease. Diabetes is the fifth leading cause of death by disease in the United States. It is also the leading cause of kidney failure, blindness in adults, and amputations not related to injury. Moreover, it is estimated that diabetes accounts for more than $132 billion of our nation’s annual health care costs and one out of every three Medicare dollars. Health care spending for people with diabetes is almost double what it would be if they did not have diabetes.
The Division of Diabetes Translation (DDT) at the CDC is the primary vehicle through which the federal government focuses on the prevention and management of diabetes. The DDT literally translates medical research, including research conducted at the National
Institutes of Health, into practices and programs that can be used in local communities to help those at-risk for diabetes to prevent or delay the onset, as well as to assist people currently suffering from diabetes to access necessary resources to treat their disease. Unfortunately, however, the DDT currently only has the resources to fund 28 of the 50 state diabetes prevention and controls programs at a “basic implementation” level, with an average grant of about $725,000. The remaining 22 states receive “capacity building” grants, with an average grant of about $270,000 – just about a third the size.
We greatly appreciate that the Senate bill allows for an increase in funding for this program for the first time in three years. During that time, however, the prevalence of diabetes has increased by about 24 percent. We simply cannot afford to continue to underfund programs to prevent, detect, and treat this dreadful disease. Increased funding for HIV/AIDS has decreased the death rate in this country from that terrible disease to approximately 17,000 last year. This is a wonderful example of what prevention linked with research can do to stave an epidemic, and we should do the same with diabetes.
Thank you for your consideration, and again we urge the Conference Committee to fund the Division of Diabetes Translation at the higher House-passed funding level of $69,157,000.
Sincerely,