A New Tool to Fight Diabetes Disparities

Diabetes isn’t just about thirst or fatigue. For hundreds of thousands of Israelis, it begins quietly—with symptoms like slow-healing wounds, dark patches of skin, blurry vision, and tingling limbs. Many never realize what’s happening until serious complications, like kidney failure or limb amputations, are already underway.

Prof. Naim Shehadeh, a leading diabetes expert and head of Bar-Ilan University's Diabetes Sphere in the Galilee, has developed a new tool to prevent these tragedies: the Medication Eligibility Calculator – a practical online platform that helps physicians determine which advanced, publicly covered treatments each patient is entitled to receive.

The calculator addresses a critical problem in Israel’s healthcare system: only 30–40% of diabetic patients eligible for new, subsidized medications actually receive them, especially in peripheral regions like the Galilee, where diabetes rates and complications are significantly higher than the national average.

"Doctors are overwhelmed," says Prof. Shehadeh. "They’re expected to remember a constantly changing list of treatment indications, insurance differences between HMOs, and lengthy eligibility documents. It's just not realistic—and patients are paying the price."

Closing the Treatment Gap

The situation is particularly dire in northern Israel, where diabetes prevalence is 20% higher than the national average, and complications—like heart disease, kidney failure, and amputations—occur 30% more frequently than elsewhere in the country. According to Prof. Shehadeh, this is not just a matter of geography—it's a reflection of deeper gaps in resources and access to up-to-date medical knowledge.

"One of my patients had severe diabetes and heart disease but wasn’t taking the new medications that could have helped him," he recalls. "He didn’t have supplemental insurance and assumed he couldn’t afford them—he didn’t know they were already included in the public health basket. That case was the trigger."

The new tool, developed at BIU’s Faculty of Medicine in Safed, allows physicians to enter a few basic patient details—age, comorbidities, lab values—and receive instant, accurate guidance on medication eligibility. The calculator is regularly updated according to Ministry of Health and HMO guidelines and is now in use across clinics and hospitals in Israel.

Practical, Not Theoretical

"Doctors don’t need more PDF guidelines," says Prof. Shehadeh. "They need fast, clear answers—especially when managing dozens of patients a day. This tool doesn’t replace clinical judgment. It enhances it."

The goal is to ensure that every person living with diabetes in Israel receives timely, effective treatment—regardless of income, HMO, or address.

With diabetes rates rising steadily—over 600,000 Israelis diagnosed and nearly one million more at risk—this kind of innovation couldn’t come sooner.