More than 16 million people in the United States have a life-threatening disease, and about one-third of them are undiagnosed. Diabetes kills one American every three minutes. Diabetes is a chronic, genetically determined, debilitating disease affecting every organ system. Insulin is not a cure, merely life support. There are two major types of diabetes: Type I (juvenile) and Type 2 (adult onset). Anyone at any age can get diabetes, including children. Many people die or suffer life-threatening health problems because the warning signs are very often missed or mistaken for something else. There is no cure, but there is hope through research. Diabetes is a leading cause of blindness, amputation, heart attack, stroke and kidney failure � and it accounts for more than $105 billion of annual U.S. health-care costs. One of every four Medicare dollars goes to pay for health care of people with diabetes. The Diabetes stamp, designed by artist James Steinberg, includes two elements associated with diabetes testing and research�a microscope and a test tube containing blood.