[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 159 (2013), Part 12]
[House]
[Page 17581]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                        AMERICAN DIABETES MONTH

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Chair recognizes the gentleman from New 
York (Mr. Reed) for 5 minutes.
  Mr. REED. Mr. Speaker, I rise this morning to recognize the month of 
November as National Diabetes Awareness Month.
  It is observed every year in November to raise awareness of diabetes 
across America; but I am here to tell you, Mr. Speaker, diabetes is a 
365-day, 24-hour-a-day, 7-days-a-week disease that kids and adults that 
deal with the disease have to attend to.
  Mr. Speaker, how do I know that? Well, this is personal to me. My son 
Will was diagnosed at age 4 with type 1 diabetes. He is 13 now, Mr. 
Speaker, and he has grown up with this disease. I can tell you that we 
get up every night, my wife in particular, as I stay down here in 
Washington, D.C., still monitoring his blood sugar by poking his 
fingers and taking his blood at 2 a.m. every time he eats just to see 
where his sugars are going to be.
  This is a disease that has not been cured, but I tell you I am 
confident, Mr. Speaker, that we will find a cure. We need to find a 
cure. We work in our household with the Juvenile Diabetes Research 
Foundation, JDRF. It is a great organization that dedicates a 
significant majority of its funds to research for a cure for type 1 
diabetes.
  Just last week, Mr. Speaker, at a town hall that I held at Fayette, 
New York, back in upstate New York, I had a young lady 5 years old come 
and speak before us and talk about diabetes and how it impacts her 
since she was diagnosed at the age of 3.
  This is a disease, Mr. Speaker, that we have the ability, in my 
opinion, to find a cure. We need to work together in a bipartisan 
basis. I am vice chair of the Congressional Diabetes Caucus. It is the 
largest caucus here in Washington, D.C. The focus on education and 
awareness of diabetes cannot just occur in November, but it must occur 
every day.
  I urge everyone to be aware of the risk factors and discuss your 
individual risks with your doctor, your health care provider. And my 
heartfelt thanks go out to all the providers and the parents and the 
caregivers of each and every person associated with somebody with this 
disease.
  Working together, my son, Will, in his lifetime, will have a cure and 
won't have to deal with this disease every day. Please, take a moment, 
recognize this disease, and in November, in particular, be aware of 
what diabetes is all about.

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