Last night I returned from an evening out to see all sorts of posts about an announcement from the BC government. They have decided to expand their insulin pump program to include young adults up to age 25. This is fabulous news! No longer will young adults entering the workforce have to turn off their pumps at age 18.
This is not however the final battle in this war however. There are still people over 25 who desperately need the help of their provincial medical plan to cover their insulin pump expenses. This is a fight that we will all continue until everyone living with diabetes in Canada who require an insulin pump but cannot afford to pay for one, will have access to one.
In BC, the driving force behind the recent change is not happy to sit and savor this latest victory. She is asking that people in British Columbia “please write the Hon. Minister Terry Lake and tell him that funding insulin pumps up to age 25 is NOT GOOD ENOUGH. I am begging all of my friends from BC to even just write a short email saying that we need pump funding for all ages of people living with TYPE ONE DIABETES with no age restrictions for people without extended health benefits to pay for them. It could be your family member that is in need of this life saving device. He needs to know that this is unacceptable. Please send it to terry.lake.mla@leg.bc.ca and carbon copy to hlth.health@gov.bc.ca, judy.darcy.mla@leg.bc.ca (NDP health critic), your MLA and the premier premier@gov.bc.ca .”
Congratulations to BC advocates for getting to this point! Good luck to advocates across Canada who seek to have their provinces follow the example of the Ontario government and fund ALL insulin pumps for people living with diabetes. This is a moment to savor…and then move forward in a war that we will win for everyone with diabetes in Canada who wishes to use an insulin pump.
Details of insulin pump coverage by province can be found at http://diabetesadvocacy.com/pump_coverage.htm
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