Women in Government Actions

The American Diabetes Association estimates that there are 23.6 million people in the United States living with diabetes. Among healthcare issues addressed by Women In Government's members is coverage for this group, which represents 6.3 percent of the population. Women In Government programs have addressed a variety of concerns in this area, including health insurance to cover ancillary equipment and insurance screening.  Additionally, Women In Government has worked to address the issue of diabetes holistically by informing legislators about health conditions surrounding it, such as kidney disease.

Diabetes Toolkit

Women In Government has created a new legislative toolkit to highlight pertinent background information on diabetes management and prevention to engage policymakers on this important issue. This Toolkit is designed to provide state legislators with the essential tools necessary to promote legislation and educate their constituents on the various issues surrounding diabetes, including: education, screening, and treatment. The Diabetes Legislative Toolkit includes fact sheets, frequently asked questions, sample legislation, and other resources to assist legislators with outreach efforts to educate their constituents on diabetes management and prevention efforts.  To view the toolkit online, click here.

Recent Events

January 2012

Marti Macchi MEd, MPH, is the Senior Consultant for Diabetes with the National Association of Chronic Disease Directors (NACDD) where she oversees diabetes-related projects and initiatives. Additionally, Ms. Macchi’s career experience has focused on disease prevention, health promotion, and community wellness initiatives in both the clinical and community settings. Ms. Macchi was a featured speaker at Women In Government’s 18th Annual State Directors’ Conference. Her presentation discussed strategies for prevention and control of diabetes, as well as updates on policies, grants, and other programs aimed at reducing the impact of diabetes. She gave state legislators an understanding of the public health and policy implications of the disease, as well as ideas for actions they could take on this issue. To learn more, please view her presentation here.

November 2011

At Women In Government’s Second Annual Healthcare Summit, legislators learned more about the bi-partisan Diabetes Caucus started in Illinois, with a special focus on how legislators worked to establish it, challenges faced, successes, tips on creating a caucus in their states, and the future plans and legislation caucus members are pursuing. Mike Tryon has been active in the 64th District ever since he first moved to the area in 1977, and is an advocate for diabetes awareness, and speaks openly about how he balances a demanding career and diabetes. To learn more please view his presentation here, or visit the Illinois Diabetes Caucus website here.

Alarmingly high rates of diabetes and other related complications in ethnic and racial minorities, coupled with care disparities, offer a particular challenge to the current healthcare system. With this in mind, Women In Government has launched a Diabetes Disparities Legislative Toolkit designed to help legislators address disparities in their communities. At Women In Government’s Second Annual Healthcare Summit this toolkit was launched and discussed by three speakers.

Dr. William Rowley, a Senior Fellow at the Institute for Alternative Futures spoke from the perspective of a clinician. He helped review the toolkit and was able to highlight important issues that legislators can now have information accessible. To learn more, please view Dr. Rowley’s presentation here. Representative Barbara Toles spoke about her experience as a Diabetes Champion for Women In government and how she intends to use the new Diabetes Disparity Toolkit. Jerry Franz spoke about his work as the Communications Consultant, Adjunct Instructor & Student Adviser at the School of Public Health & Health Services at The George Washington University, and how useful the new toolkit is.
 

June 2011

Women In Government is continuing its commitment to diabetes, and featured the topic at the 14th Annual Western Regional Conference. Katie Mason, a Policy Associate with the National Conference of State Legislators (NCSL), provided legislators with specific information about the status of diabetes care in their state, including an NCSL 50-state analysis of appropriations explicitly identified for diabetes, and her presentation is available here. Additionally, Laura Lawlor, President of Lawlor Consulting, presented on how state governments spend billions of dollars treating, educating and seeking to prevent diabetes, but the vast majority of this expenditure is not earmarked for the disease. She focused on the specific case study of zero-cost diabetes initiatives in Texas, in a presentation available here.

March 2011

This year, Women In Government held the Second Annual Diabetes Task Force highlighting holistic approaches to diabetes programs and policies; co-morbidities with related diseases such as obesity, heart and kidney disease, and Alzheimer’s; and strategies to address disparities in underserved communities. The conference provided legislators with a unique opportunity to focus on these pressing issues with colleagues and experts from across the country. Click for more info.

The topics below were discussed at the Task Force:

Creating Holistic Approaches for Diabetes Programs & Policies:
The first panel of the conference discussed Creating Holistic Approaches for Diabetes Programs & Policies. Assistant Professor of Family Medicine at the University of Florida College of Medicine, Kenyatta Lee, MD, discussed the clinics developed in Jacksonville, which have facilitated lower acute emergency costs by providing free or low-cost preventative care. His presentation is available here. Following his presentation, Commissioner of the Tennessee Department of Health, Susan Cooper, gave a presentation on Tenessee's programs to make positive, healthy changes. The role of state legislators and what they can do was elaborated in a presentation by Ivan Lanier, the Director of State Government Affairs at the American Diabetes Association.

Diabetes & the Connection to Alzheimer’s Disease:
The next topic , Diabetes & the Connection to Alzheimer’s Disease, was presented by Alzheimer's consultant, Michael Splaine. This session discussed the clinical findings and policy implications of the link between diabetes and Alzheimer’s disease. Following him, Judith Monroe, MD, gave a presentation on Diabetes & the Costs of Obesity.  Deputy Director at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Dr. Monroe discussed how healthcare costs associated with obesity could total 16 to 18 percent of total healthcare costs by 2030, the prevalence of diabetes and obesity, and the health programs designed to prevent or reduce the impact of obesity on this chronic disease.

Addressing Disparities in Underserved Communities:
The next topic, Addressing Disparities in Underserved Communities, discussed the alarmingly high rates of diabetes and other related complications in ethnic and racial minorities. Enrique Caballero MD, MA, the Director of Latino Diabetes Initiative at the Joslin Diabetes Center gave a presentation on how the The Joslin Latino Diabetes Initiative integrates a culturally oriented clinical care and patient education program, community outreach activities, professional education programs, and a clinical research program.

Diabetes and the Impact on State Budgets:
With rising prevalence rates and staggering spikes in costs associated with treating acute and critical complications of diabetes, state budgets are significantly impacted by the adverse effects of this chronic disease. Stacy Mazer, Senior Staff Associate of the National Association of State Budget Officers, provided an overview of the healthcare budget outlook and explore how states prepare for the costs associated with this and other chronic diseases.

Diabetes & Cardiovascular Disease:
Marianne Legato, MD, founder of the Partnership for Gender-Specific Medicine at Columbia University gave a presentation on Diabetes & Cardiovascular Disease. Dr. Legato discussed several women-specific aspects of heart health, and how those issues connects diabetes.

National Minority Quality Forum:
Gary Puckrein, PhD gave a demonstration of the Zip Atlas and other research tools from the National Minority Quality Forum, where he is the President and CEO. The Zip Atlas provides an excellent tool for legislators to identify what the diabetes demographic is in their specific district. More information can be found at the National Minority Quality Forum website.

Lessons Learned from the Diabetes Ten City Challenge:
Benjamin Bluml, Vice President for Research at the American Pharmacists Association Foundation and gave a presentation on the Lessons Learned from the Diabetes Ten City Challenge. The Diabetes Ten City Challenge established a voluntary employee health benefit, provided incentives through waived co-pays for diabetes medications and supplies, and helped people manage their diabetes with help from a pharmacist "coach" in collaboration with physicians and diabetes educators.

January 2011

At Women In Government's 17th Annual State Director's Conference & Ninth Biennial First-Term Legislators Conference, Diabetes was again highlighted as a priority issue. Women In Government launched a three-year campaign to raise the awareness of diabetes, and improve access to treatment. This session discussed the importance of a holistic approach to diabetes policies. Susan Cooper, the Commissioner of the Tennesse Department of Health spoke on these issues, and her materials are available here.

 Additional Resources

Visit Women In Government's Diabetes Policy Resource Center for more information.