WASHINGTON – Today, Sen. Tom Carper (D-Del.) participated in the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee hearing, "Transforming Lives Through Diabetes Research." For more information or to watch a webcast of the hearing, please click here. A copy of Sen. Carper's remarks, as prepared for delivery, follows:  

"Diabetes is a lifelong and often debilitating disease that affects 26 million Americans of every age and race, including tens of thousands of Delawareans. Each year, over 30,000 people are diagnosed with type 1 diabetes. These individuals will be dependent on insulin, frequent testing and careful diet and exercise every day for the rest of their lives. I am grateful that our witnesses, as well as the hundreds of Children's Congress delegates and their families, have made the trip to Washington today to help us better understand the grave effects of type 1 diabetes.  

"Although there is not yet a cure for type 1 diabetes, significant progress is being made by groundbreaking medical and scientific research. We still have a great deal of work to do, both in advancing research for the artificial pancreas and in our efforts to develop a cure. This hearing helps to highlight the critically important role of public-private partnerships to support, fund and advance the medical and scientific research needed to develop a cure and better treatments for type 1 diabetes. I hope today's hearing helps to remind us of the importance of medical and scientific research and its potential to improve, and even transform, the lives of those affected by type 1 diabetes and other chronic diseases."  

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