Brazil Chamber of Deputies debates disability status for Type 1 diabetics

During a public hearing at the Chamber of Deputies' Health Commission, experts raised concerns regarding the regulation of biopsychosocial assessments for individuals with Type 1 diabetes. Under Law 15.439/26, Type 1 diabetes can be classified as a disability to grant access to public policies, but this status is contingent upon a biopsychosocial evaluation.

Karla Melo Fagundes, Vice President of the Brazilian Diabetes Society, described Type 1 diabetes as an “invisible disability.” She argued that the condition meets the legal definition of a disability because long-term impairments interact with social, architectural, and attitudinal barriers to hinder full societal participation.

Brazil has approximately 500,000 people living with Type 1 diabetes, including 100,000 children and adolescents. Health data indicates significant challenges: one in nine young people remains undiagnosed, and one in three lacks adequate access to insulin and glucose testing supplies. Furthermore, less than 18% of patients monitored by the Unified Health System (SUS) reach glycated hemoglobin targets, and one in three adolescents faces microvascular complications that can lead to blindness, kidney failure, or heart disease.