U.S. Senators Susan Collins and Hillary Rodham Clinton today introduced the Diabetes Prevention and Treatment Control Act, which increases our nation’s ability to address the growing epidemic of diabetes.
“Diabetes funding at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has not been increased in the past four years, while, over the same time period, the prevalence of diabetes has increased by nearly 30 percent,” said Senator Collins. “The legislation that we are introducing today provides increased support for the CDC so that it can translate medical research into programs and practices that can be used in local communities to help people suffering from diabetes to manage their disease and to help those at risk for diabetes to prevent or delay the onset of the disease.”
“With a payment system that rewards treatments for complications, but not the low-cost prevention initiatives that could stop such complications from occurring, our healthcare system is ill-equipped to handle the growing prevalence of diabetes,” said Senator Clinton. “This legislation is the first step in establishing the important diabetes prevention and disease management initiatives necessary to meet the needs of the more than 60 million people living with diabetes or who are at risk for developing diabetes.”
The bill introduced today would codify the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s Division of Diabetes Translation and set up demonstration grants to allow for further research on how to translate effective diet and exercise interventions into effective clinical practice. It would also increase the ability of state and local health departments to engage in surveillance and education activities, and set up demonstration projects to examine the best ways to treat diabetes when it occurs in conjunction with other chronic health conditions.
Earlier this year, Senators Collins and Clinton also introduced the Gestational Diabetes (GEDI) Act to combat growing rates of diabetes striking pregnant women across the nation.
The legislation introduced today is supported by the American Diabetes Association.
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