Fact Test: Billboard wrongly claims Cooper does not consider type 1 diabetes underlying WFAE 90.7

A billboard in Johnston County near Raleigh criticizes the North Carolina government, Roy Cooper, over type 1 diabetes. It says the governor “does not consider Type 1 diabetes to be an underlying health problem.”

WRAL’s Paul Specht joins us to help separate facts from fiction.

Marshall Terry: First, Paul, who’s behind this billboard?

Paul Specht: We do not know. We reached out to the billboard company InterState Outdoor and they said it was set up and paid for by an anonymous buyer. So, we’re quite wondering who exactly is behind it. We do not know.

Terry: Well, exactly what does the billboard refer to when it says Cooper does not consider type 1 diabetes to be an underlying health problem? Is it related to COVID-19?

Woodpecker: We believe it is, but it is not entirely clear. There was no disclaimer on this billboard, nothing like you see on TV commercials, like ‘paid by the so-and-so committee’ or whatever. There is nothing like that. It has none of the lowercase letters at the bottom. So we have to assume that it’s related to the rollout of COVID vaccines, just because it’s kind of the most relevant problem here in North Carolina.

Terry: And before we go any further, just as a quick reminder, what is the difference between type 1 and type 2 diabetes?

Woodpecker: Personally, I do not know much about it, but Johns Hopkins says that type 1 is where someone’s immune system attacks and destroys the pancreas, and thus the pancreas does not produce insulin that people need. It is therefore type 1. With type 2, they can produce insulin, but the body becomes resistant to its effects, so it is not enough insulin. This is type 2.

Terry: Now, again, the billboard refers to type 1 diabetes. Is it true what the billboard says?

Woodpecker: It’s not. And again, we’ve working here from the premise that it’s related to the deployment of vaccines. And there’s a kind of controversy here that we did not know about before we started reporting it. The (US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention), known as the CDC, considers Type 1 diabetes and Type 2 diabetes to be two different levels of risk for COVID-19. They rank all these underlying conditions: how dangerous they can put someone if they catch coronavirus.

And the CDC believes that people with type 2 diabetes are at risk for COVID complications. Meanwhile, they think people with type 1 are at risk for COVID complications. And that small distinction between something you do have a high risk of and something you can take a high risk has led several states to divide diabetics into different groups for vaccination.

Terry: What about in North Carolina?

Woodpecker: In North Carolina, the (State Department of Health and Human Services) actually grouped type 1 and type 2 diabetes together. Thus, there are five phases for vaccination of the vaccine, and the fifth group is just the general population. Then everyone is eligible for vaccines. People with underlying health problems such as diabetes – type 1 or type 2 – are in group 4, which means that they are eligible to receive the vaccine in front of the rest of the population.

And that’s why we talked to advocacy groups for type 1 diabetes. This is what they want to see across the country. They want people with type 2 and type 1 to have priority over healthy people. Let’s, of course, take a moment and say it does not take into account people’s work, whether they work or not in a nursing home, parental care institution, hospitals, school or not. You know, we do not consider their job or other conditions that could put them higher on the vaccine.

Terry: So do you have any idea what the person or group behind this billboard means by what the billboard says?

Woodpecker: Because we do not know who set it up, we are not exactly sure. But when we examined this fact check, we discovered that the Department of Health had the CDC list of people at risk on its website as recently as two weeks ago. In other words, they did not list their groupings of type 1 and type 2 together. They mention that type 2 is only in danger. So, if you were just an average person and would go to the health department website and under “frequently asked questions”, you would only be referring to type 2 diabetes as an underlying health problem.

It is therefore possible that whoever posted the billboard saw the responsive website page and responded to it. The site has been updated since today. The health department told me that they always plan to group diabetics together and that everything that appears on their website is a mistake. They are trying to follow CDC guidelines and have overlooked the fact that the CDC does not group type 1 and type 2 diabetes together. But they do.

Terry: So, how did you write this claim?

Woodpecker: We misjudged this claim. This is a kind of vague statement, but it is something we can examine in depth. It is said: “The Cooper Government does not consider type 1 diabetes to be an underlying health problem.” Well, his health department treats group type 1 diabetes as a group that puts the general population ahead in vaccination. So he at least considers it an underlying condition. And it meets our criteria for fake.