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80 years after the discovery of insulin, a significant number of people around the world with diabetes die because they don’t have access to the life-saving drug.
In 2003, the IDF’s Task Force on Insulin conducted its second Global Access to Insulin and Diabetes Supplies Survey. Seventy-four countries participated, and 30 admitted they cannot ensure a continuous supply of insulin to people with type 1 diabetes.
The reasons may be acute, such as political upheaval, natural disaster, or economic crisis. Even more challenging are the chronic causes: the high cost of insulin, inadequate supply, poor quality, and transportation problems.
The situation is especially severe in sub-Saharan Africa. "In Africa, there is no country with 100% accessibility to insulin," said Professor Jean-Claude Mbanya of Cameroon, chairman of the IDF Task Force on Insulin. In the Democratic Republic of Congo, less than 25% of type 1 diabetes patients have a regular supply of insulin, the lowest accessibility rate in Africa.
But no continent is unaffected. For example, in Europe the accessibility rate in Ukraine is also less than 25%, and in South America less than 25% of Peruvian diabetes patients have access to insulin.
The IDF has declared "insulin for all" as one of the key messages of the 18th Congress. "Today in countries where medical supply is extremely limited," said Professor Mbanya, "people can be faced with the terrible dilemma of having to choose to keep somebody alive or not."
As the IDF Insulin Task Force report concludes, the international diabetes community has a collective and individual responsibility to find solutions to the crisis of insulin access and must work to realize a world in which insulin is available free of charge to all people with diabetes. 18th IDF Congress. Presented Aug. 24-29, 2003.
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