Iowans are joining others across the country this week urging members of Congress to support continued research funding. Mary Horn, with J-D-R-F of Central Iowa, says they’re hoping to secure more dollars that will be dedicated to helping find a cure, as well as better ways to treat and prevent the auto-immune disease.

About seven-percent of Iowa’s population has type-one diabetes, or about one-point-two million Americans. Horn says people with type-one diabetes face almost three times the level of medical expenses compared to people without diabetes. Known as J-D-R-F, the former Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation is the leading global organization funding research for type-one diabetes, which strikes an equal number of children and adults.