Isn’t this against the law in some states:…

Now, let me tell you about the economics of diabetes. Diabetics test their
blood sugar levels at least four times a day – children with type 1
juvenile diabetes test more like 6 to 8 timees a day. These little test
strips that are used to measure blood glucose levels cost, conservatively
and on average, 70 cents per strip. Diabetics who test their blood glucose
level just 4 times per day (breakfast, lunch, dinner, bedtime) are spending
Two Dollars and Eighty Cents per day, or a little over a thousand dollars a
year, minimum, on these strips. That’s over a billion dollars per year for
every 1 million diabetics, and there are an estimated 17 million people
suffering from diabetes in the US alone.

Next, I am going to review the financials from the 2003 and 2004 Annual
Reports of Eli Lilly & Company, one of the major producers of insulin.
Before I do, I want to remind you that insulin will never cure diabetes. It
is what my 15-year-old refers to as her ‘lifeline’. It keeps a diabetic
alive, but does not prevent the catastrophic side effects. And it will
never cure anyone!

2003: “Our worldwide sales…increaseed 14%, to 12.58 billion dollars.”
Sources of revenue: “Diabetes care products, composed primarily of
Humulin…Humalog…and Actos…hs…had aggregate worldwide revenues of 2.57
billion dollars.” Ladies and gentlemen, 20% of the worldwide sales were
from 3 products, 2 of which (Humulin and Humalog) are for ‘maintenance’ of
type 1 diabetics. In 2003, Humulin sales in the US were 507.5 million
dollars, and were 658.6 million dollars for Humalog.

The 2004 numbers are equally staggering. The same three products had
aggregate worldwide revenues of 2.61 billion dollars. Humulin sales in the
US were only 422.7 million, but Humalog sales in the US were up to 685.4
million dollars. An explanation offered by Eli Lilly is (and this is a
direct quote!) “Humalog sales in the US increased 3 percent as increased
prices offset slight volume declines.”

That’s 5.18 billion dollars in a two-year period – to treat patients who
will not get better. That’s a whole loot of insurance and medicare dollars
going to two drugs to maintain a condition for which there actually might
be a cure.

Breakthroughs using stem cell therapies have been announced all over the
world, and involving many conditions, such as reversing the side effects of
diabetes, curing type 1 juvenile diabetes, restoration of immune systems in
cancer patients, improvement of a Parkinson’s patient’s motor skills by
83%, reversal of heart tissue damage in a heart attack victim, the list
goes on and on. Stem cells work, and more research is needed.

This is not a religious issue. This is a health issue. This is a “where are
my Medicare dollars going?” issue – a quality of life issue Even though
the dollars are huge, let’s not forget that the main benefits from stem
cell research and therapies are to improve the health and to save the lives
of millions who suffer, or who may in the future suffer from diseases that
could be treated or cured with new stem cell therapies. We are talking
about improvement of the quality of a human life!

B. Cole