Leaders should support Alzheimer’s legislation

It is time we change our thinking on Alzheimer’s disease. Too often Alzheimer’s is treated as an aging issue, ignoring the public health consequences of a disease that someone in the U.S. develops every 65 seconds. Two-thirds of its annual costs are being borne by Medicare and Medicaid. It is one that demands more attention from our government.

I lost my grandmother to this disease, and I have worked in the senior care industry for over 15 years. I currently work with hospice, and daily I see the effects that Alzheimer’s has on our senior population. I understand the disease’s impact/the physical and emotional costs of the disease. In June, I will be traveling to Washington D.C., with other Alzheimer’s advocates from across the nation to meet with Congress to discuss this growing epidemic.

Congress has a chance to take decisive action by passing the Building Our Largest Dementia (BOLD) Infrastructure for Alzheimer’s Act (S. 2076/H.R. 4256). Endorsed by the Alzheimer’s Association, the BOLD Infrastructure for Alzheimer’s Act would create an Alzheimer’s public health infrastructure across the country to implement effective Alzheimer’s interventions, including increasing early detection and diagnosis, reducing risk and preventing avoidable hospitalizations.

Join me in asking Rep. Austin Scott, Rep. Sanford Bishop and Sens. Johnny Isakson and David Perdue to fight for the millions of Americans affected by Alzheimer’s by sponsoring the BOLD Infrastructure for Alzheimer’s Act.

Kimberly Blackstock

Ocilla