| San Diego Advocacy News - April 2007
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Dear Advocates,
The number of JDRF Advocates in San Diego is now over 700
individuals, that's 200 more Advocates since last year!
As the number of advocates has grown, I thought it timely to
provide an update on JDRF Advocacy. Having an active
Advocacy program is critical to JDRF's mission to find a cure
for diabetes. Your continued involvement as an Advocate
is greatly appreciated and you are making a positive
difference for all of us affected by juvenile diabetes.
For 2007, JDRF's #1 priority for Advocacy is securing
federal funding for type 1 diabetes research. Last year
the federal government spent $433 million on diabetes research
via the National Institutes of Health (NIH). As the current
NIH budget expires after 2008, BOTH the current funding levels
and needed increases in funding for diabetes research are at
risk. JDRF's Government Relations is currently
pursuing two key strategies to secure federal funding:
1. JDRF Advocates (you)
are contacting legislators to obtain their commitment for
continued type 1 research via the T1 Sign-On Letter.
AND
2. Hundreds of kids will travel to
Washington, D.C. for JDRF's Children's Congress this June to
meet with Congressional leaders.
You can
learn more about these activities through the articles below
AND a copy of the recent Action Alert is included in case you
have not contacted your legislator to sign-on to the T1
Sign-On Letter. On a separate note. As you may
know, Representative Brian Bilbray was elected to Congress
last November to represent San Diego's 50th Congressional
District. I've included a recent article written by Rep
Bilbray that provides insights into his stance on stem cell
research and the related impact to San Diego. Again,
thank you for your advocacy efforts!
Jeff
Plumer
Volunteer, Recruitment Leader & BOD
Member
JDRF
PS. Anyone can sign-up to be
a JDRF Advocate by visiting www.capitolconnect.com/jdrf
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JDRF
selects San Diego's Calvin Anderson for Children's
Congress
 Every
two years, over a hundred children with type 1 diabetes
gather in Washington, D.C. to meet face-to-face with some
of the top decision-makers in the U.S. government. As
participants in
JDRF's Children's Congress, these children have a unique and empowering opportunity
to help Members of Congress understand what life
with type 1 diabetes is like and why research to
find the cure for diabetes and its complications is so
critical. Calvin Anderson will be
one of twelve Californians traveling to Washington, D.C. in
June as part of JDRF's Children's Congress
delegation. Calvin's Story: Calvin's mantra is
"Cure diabetes, no more insulin," and he wants our leaders to
see how hard it has been to live with diabetes--especially
having to endure seven insulin injections a day--for over 3
years. Despite the anger and frustration he sometimes feels
after a high or a low, he's an active 4-year-old preschooler
who loves living near the beach. He started swim lessons last
summer--calling himself a dolphin--and he's determined to swim
in the Pacific Ocean with his brothers. For a change of pace,
he loves visiting his grandparents on their farm in Ohio and
riding on the tractors and the combine. The family is proud
that last year, Calvin's Crusaders had 65 walkers. The
Andersons say they'll do even better this year. Thank
You Calvin for representing San Diego!! If you want to
send Calvin words of encouragement, please email Calvin's
father, Ron Anderson, at randerson@chmbsolutions.com
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Diabetes costs
this country $132 billion per year,
which is almost 5
times
the National Institutes of Health's $28.5 billion
budget for this year.
Year after
year, Members of Congress ask what research has been done that
represents a strong return on the federal dollar.
Juvenile diabetes research is one such field that exhibits
promising results. Islet cell transplantation is one
example of a new therapy that has enabled a majority of all
patients who have undergone the procedure to live without
daily insulin injections. Researchers are also pursuing
a variety of prevention strategies, such as the possibility of
a diabetes vaccine, which could one day lead to new
treatments. Finally, advances have been made in the
field of diabetes complications. Researchers have found
that tight blood glucose control with intensive insulin
management could significantly reduce or delay diabetes
complications. This discovery has changed the way
diabetes is managed today.
The Diabetes
Research Working Group, a Congressionally mandated group that
was convened to study the issue of diabetes and the levels
needed to continue to advance research, called for $1.6
billion for NIH diabetes research in 2004. Actual
funding today is about $1 billion. We are asking
Congress to support an increase in funds for juvenile diabetes
research so that investigators can take advantage of the many
research opportunities in this field.
Congress
has clearly recognized the gravity of diabetes through the
establishment of a bipartisan Diabetes Caucus and has
concluded that the only way to reduce the tremendous burden of
this disease is through intensified biomedical research. Over
the past three years, Congress has emphasized diabetes
research in funding increases provided to the NIH and through
other special initiatives. Realizing the critical need to
build upon these important steps, the Congress directed the
establishment of the Diabetes Research Working Group (DRWG)
and charged it with developing a comprehensive plan for
diabetes research. This plan is intended to help increase the
effectiveness of NIH-funded diabetes research and find
solutions to the extremely serious problems posed by this
disease.
The Diabetes
Research Working Group is convinced that a significant
investment in research today will greatly speed progress in
understanding and conquering this disease and its
complications. The Strategic Research Plan set forth has two
overarching goals:
- Understand the
causes and define approaches to prevent the development of
type 1 and type 2 diabetes and their complications.
- Develop
methods for optimal management, treatment, and ultimate cure
of diabetes and its complications.
Exciting
and rapid research advances in recent years have opened the
door to a new understanding of diabetes. The next decade
offers important research opportunities that, if seized now,
can vastly improve the lives of people with or at risk for
diabetes.
For more
information about NIH research and funding, please visit www.jdrf.org/index.cfm?page_id=103934
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CRITICAL ACTION
ALERT!
We're continuing our campaign to increase the
number of signatures on the type 1 funding sign on (or Dear
Colleague) letter. Increasing the signatories to this
letter is the single most important request we will make of
you this year. Please take the time to
follow the simple steps below.
We have posted links to the two Dear
Colleague letters at the bottom of this
alert.
This request is quick and simple.
From start to finish, this request should take
less than 10 minutes of your time.
If you have already responded to a previous alert,
please take action again-persistent action will lead to
success.
FOLLOW THE STEPS BELOW TO CONTACT
YOUR LEGISLATORS (completing all steps is key to the
success of this campaign):
- Dial 1-800-730-7074
to be patched-through to your legislator's
offices. Let them know that you sent them
a letter via fax and to please be on the look out for it.
- Remember, you do NOT need to call legislators
who have already signed the Dear Colleague letter (as
indicated in step 1).
§
See the most updated list of signatories
here.
- You will need to dial the 800 number for each
of your legislators (listen for the number corresponding
to your legislators names).
- Please forward this to your friends and
family.
§
To participate in the fax campaign, users
must register if they have not done so already.
ALL volunteers may use the 800
number.
If you have any questions or feedback
from your legislators offices, send an email to advocacy@jdrf.org.
Thank you again for all that you do for
JDRF!
Sincerely,
JDRF
Government Relations
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 Stem Cell Research
Enhancement Act Passage Could Boost Research Along 'Biotech
Beach'
San Diego
Business Journal, March 2007
A Guest
Commentary by Rep. Brian Bilbray
This past
century has seen remarkable achievements in science and
medicine led by a biotechnology industry that has built and
sustained a proud heritage of scientific exploration,
discovery and innovation.
At the heart of this
effort is a collaboration of scientists, researchers and
businesses who call the 50th Congressional District their
home.
Known as Biotech Beach, this region's
reputation as a biotech hub has attracted a number of
world-class scientists, researchers and experts to San Diego.
As co-chairman of the Congressional Biomedical
Research Caucus, I understand the importance for the federal
government to match its commitment to advancement with the
resources needed to keep pace with the work of these
researchers and scientists.
Two Measures
At the start of the 110th Congress, two measures
were considered that could leave a lasting impact: H.R. 3, the
Stem Cell Research Enhancement Act, and H.R. 4, the Medicare
Prescription Drug Price Negotiation Act.
Stem
cell research ushered in a new era in biotech and research
development. The only reservation I had about stem cell
research involved "fetal farming," or the practice of
creating, acquiring or trafficking tissue derived from a human
embryo grown specifically for tissue harvesting.
That concern was addressed last year when
President Bush signed legislation into law prohibiting that
process and there is no reason now why we should not
aggressively move ahead with research that can lead to
innovative medical science breakthroughs.
Under
current policy, federal research funds can only be used on a
small number of embryonic stem cell lines that were in
existence prior to Aug. 9, 2001.
Of those, only
21 lines qualified for use as other lines were contaminated or
inferior to newer, more promising lines.
For
premier research entities such as the Burnham Institute,
Scripps Research Institute and UC San Diego, passage of H.R. 3
could mean access to new stem cells that would help scientists
accelerate the search for cures to our most debilitating
diseases.
Proud Co-Sponsor
Brian
Bilbray was proud to be an original co-sponsor of the Stem
Cell Research Enhancement Act because this legislation aims to
maximize the benefits of the loss of spare or surplus embryos
that would otherwise be discarded and thrown away.
Another measure brought forward was H.R. 4, the
Medicare Prescription Drug Price Negotiation Act.
The only way our biotech industry can continue
to thrive is if we foster an environment that includes less
restriction, and more opportunities and incentives for
investing in our region.
Unfortunately, H.R. 4
would have stifled innovation and investment in this critical
industry by imposing price caps on life-saving medicines.
The biotech industry must continue to be at the
forefront of this Congress' agenda.
San Diego's
renaissance demonstrates what can happen when science and
medicine have the support of enterprise and investment.
Rep. Brian Bilbray, R -San
Diego, is co-chairman of the Congressional Biomedical Research
Caucus and serves on the House Committee on Science and
Technology.
Rep. Bilbray is also a member of the
Diabetes Caucus.
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