COVID-19 and Diabetes: What we know and don't know

People living with diabetes are at higher risk for serious complications related to COVID-19 according to the Centers for Disease Control. The CDC recommends that people with diabetes, as well as other vulnerable populations, take extra precautions to reduce their risk.

What should people living with diabetes do to reduce their risk? What does the scientific literature say about health risks related to COVID-19 and diabetes? What can employers, health plans, and health systems do right now to support vulnerable populations? And what are we still hoping to learn?

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To answer these questions and more, we convened leading diabetes and infectious disease experts. There is much we know, and much that we don't. But despite this uncertainty, there are some clear actions we can take right now that could potentially save lives.

The webinar, moderated by Virta Medical Director Dr. Sarah Hallberg, can be watched here in its entirety. The panel includes:

• Kelly Close: Founder, diaTribe Foundation
• Lisa Fitzpatrick, MD, MPH: CDC-trained medical epidemiologist, former Chief Medical Officer of Washington DC’s Medicaid program
• David Harrison, MD: VP of Clinical Care, Virta Health
• Anne Peters, MD: Director of the USC Clinical Diabetes Program
• Bob Ratner, MD: Former Chief Medical Officer of the American Diabetes Association

Thank you to our panelists for their willingness to share their expertise on such an important topic.