Top diabetes researchers, clinicians, and other leaders from government, public health agencies, business, insurance, hospitals, patient advocacy groups, and volunteer organizations are taking part in a Pennsylvania Diabetes Summit today to create a comprehensive diabetes control plan to reduce the human and economic burden of diabetes in Pennsylvania.
Some 200 people are expected to participate in summit sessions, being held from 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. in the Ronald B. Herberman Conference Center at the UPMC Cancer Pavilion in Shadyside.
U.S. Rep. John P. Murtha (D-Johnstown), who is the ranking member of the U.S. House Defense Appropriations Subcommittee and a strong supporter of diabetes initiatives, will convene the summit.
“This summit is a critical first step in the development of a comprehensive, strategic plan to address an epidemic of diabetes that is robbing Pennsylvanians of their quality of life and putting an enormous financial strain on the nation’s overburdened healthcare system,” Murtha said.
“This summit is unique,” said Linda Siminerio, assistant professor of medicine in Pitt’s School of Medicine and executive director of the University of Pittsburgh Diabetes Institute, which is hosting the summit. “Pennsylvania is taking action by organizing efforts with leaders from insurers, employers, government, advocacy, health care providers, consumers, and research groups who will work together to identify possible solutions and devise an operational statewide plan that could help to stem the epidemic of diabetes.”
Among the summit’s speakers will be Thomas Songer, assistant professor of epidemiology in Pitt’s Graduate School of Public Health; the title of his talk is “The Economics of Diabetes.”
Nearly 8 percent of Pennsylvanians—an estimated 660,000 adults and 4,800 children —have diabetes, and experts estimate that 1.5 million new cases are diagnosed each year in the United States. Newly released statistics from the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) note that the incidence of diabetes has risen by more than 14 percent in the past two years. Nationally, diabetes is the fifth leading cause of death, according to the American Diabetes Association.
Many people first become aware of the disease when confronted with one of its life-threatening complications, such as heart disease, blindness, high blood pressure, stroke, kidney disease, or circulatory problems leading to amputation. Women who develop gestational diabetes during pregnancy have a substantially increased risk of acquiring the disorder later in life, and women who have diabetes before becoming pregnant face a higher risk of complications for themselves and their babies. One out of every 10 healthcare dollars is spent on diabetes and its complications.
Today, the CDC estimates, 20.8 million Americans—some 7 percent of the U.S. population—already have diabetes, making Pennsylvania’s 8 percent rate higher than the national average.
Goals for the summit include opportunities to explore a statewide diabetes data collection system; agreement on standards of care and best practices for diabetes prevention and management of the disease; development of a system to evaluate any plan’s effectiveness; and the implementation of policies that promote and ensure the health and safety of those already affected by diabetes.
