The Y backs diabetes bill | Miami Herald

This year’s legislative session has begun, and while there are tons of important bills, the Y encourages support for the Child Protection Improvements Act (CPIA) and Medicare Diabetes Prevention Act. These preventive measures will help create a safer environment for children and promote healthy lifestyles.

Passage of the Child Protection Improvements Act is vital to youth-serving organizations committed to promoting child safety.

Currently, the background-check system isn’t widely accessible to youth-serving organizations. CPIA creates an affordable national system for FBI fingerprint background checks on potential volunteers and staff.

The bipartisan Medicare Diabetes Prevention Act would give seniors access to community-based diabetes programs that have been shown to reduce the incidence of Type 2 diabetes by 71 percent for at-risk people over age 60.

With half of all Americans age 65 or older at risk for developing Type 2 diabetes, and one in three Medicare dollars spent on diabetes, the Medicare Diabetes Prevention Act would reduce the human and fiscal costs of diabetes on America’s seniors.

As a community, we need to invest in and support prevention and a healthier community.