Congress is Making Alzheimer's a Priority!

As an advocate for the Alzheimer’s Association, I recently traveled to Washington DC with 24 other Georgians to seek funding to help researchers find a cure for Alzheimer’s disease and to build support for legislation that will improve the lives of millions of people living with Alzheimer’s and their families. We represented every congressional district in Georgia and were joined by 1,200 other advocates from across the country! On Tuesday, June 19th we painted Capitol Hill purple together!

While in DC, I participated in a meeting with staff from the offices of both Senators Isakson and Perdue. Numerous constituents shared personal stories with the senators about the impact that Alzheimer’s has had on their lives and the lives of their loved ones. I also met with Representative Rob Woodall’s staff to extend thanks to the Congressman for his history of supporting research funding into Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias, as well as to ask for his support of two current legislative proposals: 1) the BOLD Infrastructure for Alzheimer’s Act (BOLD), which will address Alzheimer’s as a public health crisis; and 2) the Palliative and Hospice Education and Training Act (PCHETA), which will increase the palliative care workforce, educate current and future healthcare providers about end of life care, and help avoid unwanted hospitalizations at the end of life. Finally, we discussed the need for additional Alzheimer’s research funding for the National Institutes of Health (NIH). Alzheimer’s disease, costing $277 billion in 2018, is the most expensive disease in America and most of these costs are borne by Medicaid and Medicare.

This week, we learned that our combined efforts were effective. PCHETA passed the House Subcommittee favorably and the Senate Appropriations Committee recommended a $425 million increase for Alzheimer’s research funding. Every 65 seconds someone in the US develops Alzheimer’s disease, and 1 in 3 seniors dies with Alzheimer’s or another dementia. I plan to continue advocating. Join me in this fight by visiting https://www.alz.org/get-involved-now/advocate!

Sincerely,

Stephanie Sillay, Alzheimer's Advocate