Prevention

Type 2 diabetes prevention presents a massive opportunity to save both lives and money. In the United States, the direct costs of diabetes, not counting lost productivity and early death or disability, is nearing $200 billion per year, and growing fast. Some 30 million Americans have diabetes, over 90% with type 2. We are convinced that care alone cannot sustainably address this crisis; widespread prevention is essential. Additionally, while we could not determine how much money is spent on prevention, it is obvious that it is substantially underfunded. Finally, while we know a good deal about what can help prevent type 2 diabetes, we still have much to learn about how to fund, implement, scale, and sustain prevention efforts.