Addressing the Diabetes Epidemic

More than two million people in California have diabetes and the rates of new diagnoses are growing rapidly.  Phil Angelides will work to lower the number of new diabetes cases.

Schwarzenegger and the Bush administration have done nothing to address the rise of diabetes.  In fact, federal funding for diabetes research in the 2007 budget will be cut by about $2 million. This is despite the fact that diabetes is the only major disease where the death rate is still increasing (up 22 percent since 1990). If health patterns do not change, one in three children born in 2000 will end up with diabetes. 

To address the diabetes epidemic, Phil Angelides will to take decisive action to:

• Increase access to quality health care by expanding coverage for children and working families.
  
• Require that all health insurance policies cover diabetes screening.  Phil will oppose loopholes that allow HMOs and insurers to deny coverage of necessary diabetic supplies, such as lancets, insulin syringes, and test strips.
  
• Start a California A1C registry.  The best way to monitor long-term blood sugar in diabetics is by a blood test called the Hemoglobin A1C.  This registry will alert patients and their doctors when lab tests show high blood sugar levels, allowing the patients and doctors to monitor their diabetes better and catch undetected cases of the disease. 
  
• Combat the increased instance of diabetes in younger populations.  More and more adolescents are being diagnosed with Type 2 diabetes – a diagnosis usually reserved for much older individuals.  Much of this increase is fueled by the obesity epidemic that is plaguing our young children.  Angelides will work with local schools to limit the availability of high-fat, high-calorie foods and to increase access to affordable, healthy foods; fight for improved physical education in schools; and create a “health report card” to be sent to parents and children of all California schools.