AMA Expanding Diabetes Prevention Program to Eight More States
AMA reported Nov. 9 that it is currently working with more than 45 health systems throughout the United States to develop and implement system-wide diabetes prevention strategies.
The American Medical Association announced an expanded, multi-state effort that aims to reduce the incidence of type 2 diabetes nationwide. It builds off AMA's initial work to prevent new cases of type 2 diabetes in California, Michigan, and South Carolina and expands that to similar statewide efforts in eight additional states to help reach more of the 84 million American adults who unknowingly live with prediabetes —the precursor to type 2 diabetes.
AMA said it through its collaborations launched last year with medical societies in California, Michigan, and South Carolina, it has been working to develop models for preventing type 2 diabetes that can be used in other states across the country. Utilizing best practices learned through the initial collaborations, AMA will now work with state medical societies in Maine, Maryland, Mississippi, New York, Ohio, Oregon, Pennsylvania, and Rhode Island to further develop models to prevent new cases.
"With 90 percent of the people living with prediabetes in this country unaware they have the condition and at high risk for developing type 2 diabetes, we are excited to now be working with eight new states to help reach thousands more patients with prediabetes," said AMA President Dr. David O. Barbe. "Using what we've learned through our ongoing work, we will have more opportunities to get more patients into proven programs that can help prevent or delay the onset of type 2 diabetes."
The models developed through these collaborations will be used to encourage more physicians to screen their at-risk patients for prediabetes and refer those at high risk to evidenced-based National Diabetes Prevention Programs, which have been shown to cut in half the risk of progressing to type 2 diabetes. This is the primary mission of Prevent Diabetes STAT™, a national collaboration between AMA and CDC that launched in 2015. AMA said this effort also will help to bridge the gap between the clinical care setting and communities to reduce the incidence of type 2 diabetes by connecting more patients to evidence-based lifestyle change programs that are available in their communities.
AMA reported Nov. 9 that it is currently working with more than 45 health systems throughout the United States to develop and implement system-wide diabetes prevention strategies.