Dear USET/USET SPF Family,
On September 12, 2023, USET SPF joined numerous Tribal Nations and organizations in sending a letter to Congressional leadership urging reauthorization of the Special Diabetes Program for Indians (SDPI) before the program expires on September 30, 2023.
Congress may choose to fully reauthorize and fund the SDPI for one or more fiscal years, or it may extend the program for a short time while final negotiations are completed. When the SDPI was last up for reauthorization, the SDPI was renewed for six short-term extensions prior to final reauthorization. If the SDPI is not extended or fully reauthorized by September 30, 2023, the program funding will lapse and continuity of care for patients in the program will be jeopardized.
Earlier this summer, both the House and the Senate passed legislation out of committee that would reauthorize the SDPI at $170 million per year for two fiscal years (FY 2024 and 2025). These bills are still awaiting consideration by the full House and Senate. This week, the House Energy and Commerce Committee introduced a bipartisan piece of legislation aimed at health care price transparency that also included a provision to reauthorize both the SDPI and the Special Diabetes Program for Type I Diabetes. This legislation includes $170 million for FYs 2024 and 2025, but also includes an additional $42.9 million to become available between October 1, 2025 and December 31, 2025. Presumably, this additional funding is intended to mitigate the potential risk of Congressional disagreements over the larger health care packages that include SDPI reauthorization or simple delays in legislative action. Such a provision would provide more funding certainty in situations like the current one where Congressional negotiations and lack of legislative activity are threatening the program’s continued success.
USET SPF will continue to monitor this important issue and will provide updates when they become available.
For more information, please contact Ashton Martin, USET SPF Health Policy Analyst, at amartin@usetinc.org or at 629-736-1433.
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