Diabetes already costs the NHS nearly 10 billion pounds ($16 billion) a year, the charity’s Chief Executive Barbara Young said in a statement. Some 80 percent of the costs could be avoided, if treatment is administered on time, the report found.
Young stated that "avoidable human suffering will continue and the costs of treating diabetes will continue to spiral out of control and threaten to bankrupt the NHS," unless the NHS prioritizes better care for diabetes patients.
The charity urged the government to ensure that every diabetes patient receives correct and timely treatment in order to reduce the risk of further health complications and the consequential costs for the "already strained" NHS budget.
"There is huge potential to save money and reduce pressure on NHS hospitals and services through providing better care to prevent people with diabetes from developing devastating and costly complications," Young said, as quoted on the charity’s website.
According to the charity, at present only six in ten people with diabetes in England and Wales receive the eight care processes recommended by the National Institute for Health Care and Excellence (NICE).
