Today is World Diabetes Day and a time to reflect upon the current state of diabetes. Significant strides have been made with improved pharmaceuticals to treat diabetes, a better understanding of the pathophysiology of diabetes, better access to care for people with diabetes, and improved technologies for self-monitoring of blood glucoses. However, with that being said there are still major hurdles that still need to be cleared including:

• Diabetes self-management education for all
• Unrestricted access to effective pharmaceuticals without interruption due to insurance coverage gaps
• Continued research and discovery of new classes of pharmaceutical treatments
• PREVENTION strategies
• Expansion of the chronic care model for diabetes care
• Implementation of effective treatment algorithms such as the new AACE treatment guidelines
• Better training and credentialing of providers regarding the care of people with diabetes
• Aggressive diagnosis to identify the numerous undiagnosed cases of diabetes
• Effective treatment strategies for people with pre-diabetes
• Did I mention PREVENTION?