On Friday last i. e. World Diabetes Day, Premier Gordon Campbell and Health Minister George Abbott making an announcement at a Vancouver elementary school, stated that the Canadian province of British Columbia would soon cover all costs for insulin pumps used by 600 of the 2,200 children suffering from Type 1 diabetes in the province.

Till now, families with diabetic children have paid for the pumps which cost about $6,500 a year, out of their own pockets. However, the new funding programme costs amounting to $1.5-million each year, will not immediately cover pump costs for all B. C. children using them. Rather, 200-patients will be provided with new pumps each year.

Mostly patients with serious diabetes use insulin pumps, as the condition cannot be controlled with oral medications or daily injections. Attached to the patient's body and carried in a pocket or even worn on a belt, the device pumps insulin steadily into the body, based on the patient's needs.

Patients using disposable insulin pumps that last for three days, will be allowed to build pump reservoirs up to a maximum cost of $700 each year.

The provinces of Ontario, Saskatchewan and Newfoundland already cover the cost of insulin pumps for diabetic children through provincial medical plans. According to Canadian Diabetes Association, diabetics who are at high risk of heart disease and kidney problems, can benefit from the pumps, which save health costs over time, as they help keep diabetics, especially children, healthier far longer than other treatment methods.