NEW YORK, NY December 15, 2005 —Starting next year, medical labs that test for diabetes will have to report the results to the City Health Department. WNYC's Fred Mogul has more.

The move follows the unanimous approval of the department's governing board yesterday and makes New York the first city to add diabetes to the list of "reportable diseases." Those are contagious illnesses such as tetanus and hepatitis that are tracked for infection control.

But under Commissioner Dr. Thomas Frieden, the department has been pushing for a larger role in monitoring and preventing chronic and lifestyle diseases. Eventually, officials will use the data collected to make sure patients know more about their status as diabetics and make sure doctors stay in touch with their patients.

Privacy advocates have expressed concern, but patients can opt out of the system, and the city says that after more than a century of collecting sensitive personal data, it has never had a breach of security.