The Manitoba government should cover the cost of insulin pumps for young diabetics, the Opposition Progressive Conservatives said Tuesday.

At a news conference inside the legislative building, Progressive Conservative Leader Hugh McFadyen said the NDP government should be covering the cost of pumps to people aged 18 and under who have Type 1, or juvenile diabetes. A government under his leadership would do so, he said.

'Insulin for someone with Type 1 diabetes is like air. They need it to live.'—Progressive Conservative leader Hugh McFadyen

"Insulin for someone with Type 1 diabetes is like air. They need it to live," McFadyen said. "By providing young people with insulin pumps and other supplies, a Progressive Conservative government would be helping them better manage their disease and lead active, healthy lives."

He estimated there are about 500 teens who would benefit. The annual cost to the government would be about $4,300 per pump, or $2.2 million, McFadyen said.

Unlike Type 2 diabetes, Type 1 is not attributed to lifestyle factors and usually appears in childhood. An insulin pump means a person with diabetes doesn't have to worry about frequent injections, McFadyen noted.

The news conference was cut short when a teenager attending it collapsed. The boy, one of several diabetics on hand as McFadyen's guests, was fine after a few minutes.

Four provinces already fund the pumps — British Columbia, Newfoundland and Labrador, Saskatchewan, Ontario — and two others have committed to funding it in the future, according to McFadyen.