This is an archive page. The links are no longer being updated.

Date: Thursday, October 30, 1997
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact:  CDC Press Office (404) 639-3286

More Americans than ever before are suffering from diabetes, with the number of new cases averaging 798,000 each year, HHS' Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported today. In 1997, 15.7 million people in the United States have diabetes, nearly 6 percent of the U.S. population.

In an edition devoted to the subject of diabetes, CDC's Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report reports today that the disease has steadily increased in the United States between 1980 and 1994. Hardest hit by this increase is the African-American population. For example, CDC reports that the prevalence of diabetes among African-Americans rose 33 percent from 1980 to 1994, compared with 11 percent for white Americans. Other minority populations also suffer disproportionately from the disease, especially American Indians.

The Clinton Administration and Congress launched new efforts earlier this year to bolster research and prevention of diabetes, committing $2.4 billion over five years in new funding for Medicare as well as public health agencies.

"The onset of diabetes often goes unnoticed by the individual who has it, yet its health consequences can be enormously serious," said HHS Secretary Donna E. Shalala. "We are committed to doing more to help all Americans prevent this disease, diagnose it early, and control it. It is a serious health challenge for our country, and especially for many minority populations."

Among Americans aged 65 and older, 6.3 million persons (18.4 percent of this age group) have diabetes; among those aged 20 and older, 15.6 million (8.2 percent of all Americans 20 and over) have the disease.

Prevalence of the disease by ethnic group includes:

• Non-Hispanic whites: 11.3 million (7.8 percent of those aged 20 and older)
• Non-Hispanic African-Americans: 2.3 million (10.8 percent)
• Mexican Americans: 1.2 million (10.6 percent)
• Other Hispanic/Latino Americans: On average, almost twice as likely to have diabetes as non-Hispanic whites of similar age. (Data insufficient for more specific estimate for 1997)
• American Indians: Rates vary among tribes and communities, ranging from 5 percent to 50 percent for diagnosed diabetes

"These data estimate the number of Americans who have diabetes. However, diabetes is a disease that often goes undiagnosed. Millions of Americans with diabetes do not know they have the disease," said CDC Director David Satcher, M.D.

Of the 15.7 million total, 10.3 million are diagnosed and 5.4 million are undiagnosed.

In addition to ongoing diabetes research, prevention and control efforts at HHS agencies including CDC, the National Institutes of Health and the Indian Health Service, the department has launched three new diabetes initiatives following enactment of the Balanced Budget Act earlier this year:

• New Medicare Coverage: Under the Balanced Budget Act of 1997, expanded coverage is provided for self-management services provided outside of hospital settings, with 5-year spending estimated at $2.1 billion by the Congressional Budget Office. The goal is to help Medicare beneficiaries better control their blood sugar levels and reduce expensive complications of diabetes such as cardiovascular disease and renal failure.

• Expanded Research: The Act also provides $150 million over five years for research on type 1 diabetes. The new initiative will enable HHS to increase its annual funding for total diabetes research by approximately 10 percent.
• Indian Health Initiative: Funding under the Act provides HHS' Indian Health Service and other agencies with $150 million for five years for expanded and more intensive diabetes prevention and treatment services in partnership with tribes and Urban Indian Health Centers. The program will include earlier testing for diabetes and community-based intervention efforts to increase knowledge.

Diabetes is a serious disease and, if left uncontrolled, it can cause serious complications for an individual, including strokes and blindness. More than half of lower limb amputations in the United States are among people with diabetes. Diabetes is the seventh leading cause of death in the United States. This disease also takes a high financial toll on the United States, costing more than $92 billion in medical expenses, disability, and lost wages each year, according to the estimate of the American Diabetes Association.

Type 2 diabetes, which accounts for more than 90 percent of all cases of diabetes, is associated with older age, race, ethnicity, and a family history of diabetes. In addition, CDC reports that obesity and physical inactivity are strongly associated with increased risk of diabetes.

Type 1 diabetes, formerly known as Insulin-Dependent or Juvenile Onset Diabetes, occurs when the body does not produce any insulin, most often occurring in children and young adults. It accounts for 5 to 10 percent of diabetes.

Many clinical trials are underway, including the NIH's Diabetes Prevention Program, to test whether lifestyle changes and/or pharmacological treatments can prevent onset of diabetes.

Serious complications of diabetes can be controlled by properly identifying and treating people with the disease.

HHS press releases are available on the World Wide Web at: www.hhs.gov.