Nearly 80,000 people in the United States died of diabetes-related complications in 2016. A new YMCA program is seeking to raise awareness of the financial, health, and logistical impact of living with diabetes.  

Vanessa Rein, MD, clinical associate professor, Endocrinology, Diabetes and Metabolism, was quoted in a story in Washington County's Daily News about the implementation of this community diabetes prevention program in West Bend. 

Speaking about the financial of living with diabetes, Dr. Rein explained that minimal monthly costs for an average adult with type 2 diabetes who has health insurance is likely to be between $45 and $80. 

“I would say the average adult with type 2 diabetes is probably going to be taking one or two medicines,” said Dr. Rein. “One of them will probably be generic so the copay is probably going to be small, somewhere between $5 or $10 per month. They are probably going to have a $20 copay for the other medicine at least. They are going to need meter supplies. That is going to be another $20 copay. That is probably the most minimal cost I can think of, but some people [will have] copays [of] $40 for some of those drugs, so they are going to be paying $60 a month for the medicine, $20 for the supplies.”

Resources:

• "Taking control and making a positive change," Washington County Daily News, September 27, 2017