People living with type 1 diabetes (T1D) in low- and middle-income countries face a 50-year gap in life expectancy compared to those in high-income countries.1 Helmsley’s T1D global access portfolio works to address this stark inequity by ensuring that people living with T1D have medicine in hand and access to care, when and where they need it. For all people with T1D, access to affordable medicines and health supplies can be the difference between life and death.
We are working to address the immediate, urgent needs to increase access to insulin and other life-sustaining supplies through support for donation programs and T1D clinics. At the same time, we are working to establish lasting, long-term solutions. We support efforts to expand integrated care models, to shape commercially sustainable markets for medicines, and to build a global movement to treat chronic noncommunicable diseases, such as T1D.
Helmsley is committed to breaking down partner silos, building coalitions, and investing in community-led solutions. By taking bold risks and forging deep, long-term partnerships rooted in a shared vision, we can dismantle deeply entrenched barriers and help build a world where everyone can live full, healthy lives — no matter the diagnosis, no matter where they call home.
1 Gregory, A. G. (Oct 2022). The Lancet: Diabetes & Endocrinology. “Global incidence, prevalence, and mortality of type 1 diabetes in 2021 with a projection to 2040: a modelling study.” Download here.
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August 19, 2024
For the millions of people uprooted by crisis or conflict, finding adequate health care can be nearly impossible. Displaced populations often face already overwhelmed health systems — and the strain on resources makes it harder for people to access necessary care. This is especially dangerous for people living with chronic noncommunicable diseases like type 1 diabetes (T1D), who face immediate…
June 25, 2024
NEW YORK, June 25, 2024 — The Leona M. and Harry B. Helmsley Charitable Trust announced today a $5 million grant to World Bank’s Health System Transformation and Resilience Multi-Donor Trust Fund (MDTF), becoming the first philanthropy to contribute to the newly established technical assistance mechanism. Over three years, the MDTF will accelerate countries’ efforts to transform primary health care…
December 18, 2023
Recognizing the critical need for access to quality diabetes care in humanitarian settings, The Leona M. and Harry B. Helmsley Charitable Trust today announces a $2.6 million grant to the International Alliance for Diabetes Action (IADA) to address diabetes within the context of rising global displacement.
December 12, 2023
Universal Health Coverage (UHC) means that all people have access to the full range of quality health services they need, when and where they need them, without financial hardship. The concept of UHC is powerful, but putting it into practice has proven incredibly challenging. When Helmsley co-hosted an event with UNICEF USA and Eli Lilly on “Accelerating Progress on Childhood…
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At Helmsley, we are driven to help the global T1D community live safer, better, and more fulfilling lives. As the world’s largest private philanthropic supporter of people living with T1D, we recognize our unique and urgent responsibility to ensure this population has access to care. But we also acknowledge that T1D is part of the broader category of noncommunicable diseases…
October 25, 2023
While progress has been made toward affordable insulin in the U.S. — including through grants from Helmsley’s Type 1 Diabetes Program to organizations like Civica — there’s a critical need for affordable, quality insulin access globally. In an opinion piece for STAT News, Trustee David Panzirer outlines what can be done, and how Helmsley-supported projects like PEN-Plus are helping make…