SDP Legislation Advances in Congress; Society Leads Diabetes Community in Support of Program 

In June, legislation to reauthorize the Special Diabetes Program (SDP) advanced in Congress and the Endocrine Society played a leading role in advocating for the legislation.

Introduced in both the House and Senate, this legislation would reauthorize both components of the program through December 2025. The House Energy and Commerce Committee unanimously approved a House bill to reauthorize SDP while the Senate Health Education Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee approved legislation introduced in the Senate. The co-chairs of the Congressional and Senate Diabetes Caucus are leading the efforts in Congress to pass the legislation. SDP is made up of two components focused on diabetes research and prevention.

The Special Diabetes Program for Type 1 advances important research for type 1 diabetes at the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Disorders (NIDDK) at the National Institutes of Health. The Special Diabetes Program for Indians (SDPI), which is administered by the Indian Health Service (IHS), provides treatment and education programs for people with type 2 diabetes among American Indian and Alaska natives (AI/AN). The legislation would reauthorize both components for two years at $170 million per-program per-year, a 13% increase compared to current funding.

The Endocrine Society is one of the lead advocates, working closely with the JDRF and the National Indian Health Board, to reauthorize SDP. The Society worked closely with the Congressional Diabetes Caucus and provided input to the co-chairs while they were negotiating the funding amounts for the legislation. The Society has endorsed both bills. We also led a letter signed by 10 organizations in the diabetes community supporting the House and Senate legislation. Funding for SDP will expire on September 30 unless legislation is signed into law reauthorizing the program.

We encourage all members to join our online advocacy campaign urging Congress to pass this legislation before SDP funding expires on September 30. You can visit the advocacy page on the Endocrine Society’s website to join our campaign.