Representatives From all 50 States in DC to Speak on Behalf of the 1.25 million Americans Living with T1D
Melinda Rose, Chair JDRF Grassroots Leadership Team
(Washington D.C., Monday, March 12, 2018) – We are currently in one of the most productive eras for type 1 diabetes (T1D) research. The federally-funded Special Diabetes Program (SDP) has played a huge role in this, delivering scientific breakthroughs, new therapies, innovation on the next-generation of technology, and progress toward a cure.
JDRF is the leading global organization funding T1D research. Since 1970, JDRF has raised or directed nearly $5 billion to researching a cure. JDRF Government Day 2018 will take place Friday, March 9 through Tuesday, March 13, 2018, in Washington, D.C.
During Government Day, more than 150 JDRF advocates from around the country will be on Capitol Hill, sharing their personal stories of life with T1D, and what the Special Diabetes Program means to them. JDRF has bipartisan support on Capitol Hill, and advocates will be in D.C. to speak up on behalf of the 1.25 million Americans living with T1D.
The good news is that in February Congress approved a two-year renewal of the SDP. Researchers across the country can now build on past successes, continue promising clinical trials, and embark on new studies that lead to better treatments, prevention, and ultimately, a cure for T1D.
Congress must continue critical Federal funding for T1D research to advance new treatments and keep research going that relieves both the daily burden for people with T1D as well as the economic toll to the U.S. health care system.
Congress had the foresight to create the Special Diabetes Program, the Federal government’s primary diabetes research program, to address the growing burden of diabetes on millions of American families and our nation’s economy. As a result, the program has become the nation’s most successful, strategic, and comprehensive effort to combat diabetes and bring us closer to a cure.
The SDP is a top priority for JDRF and the type 1 diabetes (T1D) community. Cutting-edge technologies and treatments that keep people with T1D healthy and out of hospitals have directly come from SDP-funded research. That’s why we continue to work to ensure that the SDP is consistently renewed by Congress. Thanks to the SDP, groundbreaking research has improved thousands of lives and brought us closer to a world without T1D. This includes treatment for diabetic eye disease, medications for diabetic kidney disease, and the development of revolutionary technology like artificial pancreas systems.