Bill to Establish Chronic Disease Registry Wins Unanimous Senate Support

During Tuesday’s meeting of the Senate Committee on Budget, Appropriations and Finance, lawmakers were unanimously supportive of a bill brought by Senator Ray Fonseca to establish a registry to track chronic kidney disease and diabetes in the territory.

As he introduced the draft bill, which has already been approved by the Committee on Health, Hospitals and Human Services, Mr. Fonseca noted that almost 15 percent of the population of the Virgin Islands suffers with diabetes, with an additional 9,000 residents considered to be in a pre-diabetic stage. He emphasized the severe health impact of diabetes in a population, leading to increased incidence of eye problems, foot complications sometimes requiring amputation, kidney disease, nerve damage, and increased risk of heart attack and stroke.

The proposed registry, which would require an initial investment of $250,000 to establish, would collect data on the prevalence, risk factors, and outcomes of chronic kidney disease and diabetes in the USVI. The data could then be used by public health officials to better understand and address the troubling issue.