Merger will help Lifecare fight diabetes
Lifecare Alliance, one of central Ohio’s largest and oldest charities, has merged with Diabetes Dayton in an effort to boost services in a part of the state with high rates of the disease.
The move brings Ohio’s last two diabetes-focused nonprofit organizations under the Lifecare umbrella, officials said. The Central Ohio Diabetes Association joined Lifecare in 2017.
“It’s just a scourge in our world,” Lifecare Alliance president and CEO Chuck Gehring said of diabetes. “It can take people’s health down quickly. We want to do what we can.”
He said Diabetes Dayton, a small agency that has served southwestern Ohio for nearly 60 years, has worked to offer education, disease management and testing materials as people throughout the nation struggle with insulin costs that have tripled or even quadrupled.
“It’s been horrendous,” he said. “We’re seeing so many people not able to take their full doses because they can’t afford it. We are not lobbyists, but we are involved in advocacy for the clients. We think this is a big area.”
At the same time, charities that aim to assist diabetes patients “are not well-funded,” Gehring said. “Diabetes Dayton is not losing money, but they’re not making it. The issue has been that they just can’t take every client that they can and provide service.”
According to Lifecare, about 14% of the population in Montgomery County, which includes Dayton, has diabetes. That’s higher than incidences in the state (11.2%) and nation (10.5%).
Diabetes is the fourth-leading cause of death for Black males in Dayton.
During a news conference Thursday to announce the merger, Dayton Mayor Nan Whaley said she’s pleased that the diabetes group now will have an opportunity to expand its muchneeded services.
Lifecare provides an array of health and nutrition services to older adults and people with medical problems, and has merged with five other nonprofit organizations the past several years, along with Meals-on-wheels programs in four other counties.
Gehring said Lifecare has no plans to take over meal-service operations in the Dayton area. Diabetes Dayton will continue all its programs, including Camp Ko-man-she, a summer camp for kids. rprice@dispatch.com @Ritaprice