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Lack of funds delays diabetes center
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Posted on Jan 11 1999
It has been five months since the bill calling for the establishment of a diabetes center was passed into law, yet the local government still hasn’t come up with the facility’s proposed $300,000 budget.
The Diabetes Control Act, or Public Law No. 11-31, went into effect in August of last year. But up to now, diabetics have yet to hear a word when the facility will be built.
The Act mandates that a Diabetes Care and Control Center with an annual budget of $300,000 be established as a new section under the Division of Public Health.
Its mission is to carry out major programs of focus related to diabetes — care; treatment and research; monitoring and outreach; and prevention.
Clara M., a housewife suffering from diabetes for three years now, expressed disappointment over the project’s delay.
“I was hoping that the center will be able to accommodate patients like me by this time. You know how it is in the hospital these days. It’s congested. You have to wait for many hours. Having the center is like being treated by a specialist at once,” she said.
Another diabetic who only identified himself as Jose said the government should prioritize building the center since diabetes is considered a leading noncommunicable chronic disease of the indigenous people.
“I think the Diabetes Center will help a lot in educating the public on how to prevent diabetes. A lot of us need to be told what to do,” he said.
In a previous interview, Health Secretary Joseph Kevin Villagomez said the main problem on the law was that it did not specify where the money will be sourced from.
“We need to find out where we’re going to get the money. The bill did not specifically said where the money is gonna come from,” he said.
Statistics from the Division of Public Health showed that as of November 1998, diabetics in the Northern Marianas totaled 2,039. This means one out of three locals aged 40 and above is diabetic.
Diabetes is a disease characterized by the abnormal sugar level in the body. It can lead to heart disease, high-blood pressure, blindness, lower extremity amputations, dental disease and kidney failure.
