St. Louis-area hospitals cut back diabetes education efforts

Although more Americans are being diagnosed with diabetes, some St. Louis-area hospitals are scaling back or eliminating their dia­betes education programs. Advocates say can these programs can prevent a lifetime of unnecessary complications and cost. But the hospitals say these programs are costly to provide and fewer patients are interested. St. Mary's Health Center, for example, watched enrollment drop to an expected 120 patients this year from 160 patients in 2006.