Produced for Thomson Reuters
America’s Losing Battle against Diabetes.
Long before the pandemic, Kate Herrin was among the millions of Americans struggling to control their diabetes. Then COVID-19 hit. Herrin – poor and living alone – rarely left her apartment, ordering fast-food delivery instead of risking the grocery store. She stopped going in for regular lab tests. She had a harder time than ever securing medical supplies. Her health deteriorated further. On Dec. 15, Herrin and Elicia Heaston, her best friend, were swapping messages on Facebook midday when Herrin abruptly dropped off the conversation. Heaston called Herrin’s phone and got no answer. When a few more hours passed without any word, Heaston and her husband drove from their home in rural West Alexandria, Ohio, to Herrin’s apartment nearby and pounded on the door. No lights were on, but they could hear the television. Heaston called 911. When firefighters arrived, they found the 42-year-old dead on the bathroom floor. Herrin’s rescue dogs, Honey and Sugar, were lying quietly next to her. The coroner attributed the heart attack that killed Herrin to complications of type 2 diabetes.
- Editorial Photographer / Photojournalist