Funding Alzheimer's Research

Floor Speech

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Ms. MAXINE WATERS of California. Thank you so very much.

John Garamendi, I would like to thank you not only for allotting me
this time this evening, but I would like to thank you for your
commitment to educating on this issue and to helping our colleagues to
understand that we must focus on this issue and that we must do more to
support research. You are indeed a leader. This certainly is not the
first time that you have organized one of these evening meetings on
this, and I thank you for the work that you are doing.

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Ms. MAXINE WATERS of California. Mr. Speaker, as cochair of the
Congressional Task Force on Alzheimer's Disease, I know how devastating
this disease can be for patients, families, and caregivers. The task
force works on a bipartisan basis to increase awareness of Alzheimer's,
strengthen the Federal response to the disease, and provide assistance
to Alzheimer's patients and their caregivers. I am proud to lead the
task force, along with my returning cochair, Congressman Chris Smith,
and incoming cochairs Michael Burgess and Chaka Fattah.

Alzheimer's is a tragic disease affecting millions of Americans, and
it has reached crisis proportions. There is no effective treatment, no
means of prevention, nor even a method for slowing the progression of
the disease. According to the Centers for Disease Control and
Prevention, 5 million Americans are living with Alzheimer's disease as
of 2013. This number is expected to almost triple to 14 million by the
year 2050.

The cost associated with Alzheimer's disease and other forms of
dementia are also growing at an unsustainable rate. A recent RAND study
of adults ages 70 years and older found that the total economic cost of
dementia in 2010 was estimated to be $109 billion for direct care
alone. That is higher than the cost of both heart disease and cancer.
Furthermore, when the cost of informal care is included, the total cost
rises to between $159 billion and $215 billion.

We must act now to change the trajectory of this disease. The
bipartisan-supported National Plan to Address Alzheimer's Disease calls
for a cure or an effective treatment for Alzheimer's by the year 2025.
Reaching this goal will require a significant increase in Federal
funding for Alzheimer's research.

Last December, I joined together with task force cochair Congressman
Chris Smith to call for a $200 million increase in funding for
Alzheimer's research in the President's budget for fiscal year 2016.
However, while the President's budget did recognize the importance of
Alzheimer's research, it only increased funding by $51 million. This
year, I plan to work with my colleagues on the task force to make
certain Congress appropriates robust funding for Alzheimer's research
to meet the urgent need.

I also plan to reintroduce three bills to expand the available
resources for Alzheimer's research and assist patients, families, and
caregivers.

First, I will reintroduce the Alzheimer's Caregiver Support Act. This
bill will authorize grants to public and nonprofit organizations to
expand training and support services for families and caregivers of
Alzheimer's patients. With the majority of Alzheimer's patients living
at home under the care of family and friends, it is important that we
ensure these caregivers have access to the training and resources
needed to provide proper care.

Second, I will reintroduce legislation to reauthorize and improve the
Missing Alzheimer's Disease Patient Alert Program, a small but
effective Department of Justice program that helps local communities
and law enforcement agencies quickly identify persons with Alzheimer's
disease who wander away from their homes and safely reunite them with
their families. This program is very valuable. It is a valuable
resource for first responders. More importantly, it protects vulnerable
Alzheimer's patients and brings peace of mind to their families.

Several years ago, I offered an amendment to continue funding for
this program, which cost only $1 million for the year. The following
year, I called for, and received, a doubling of the funding for this
important program.

Since then, I have made sure this program gets funding every year. I
am not happy with the amount of the funding. We need to do more, and we
have to fight more beyond 2015 into the 2016 budget to make sure that
we get more money because it is desperately needed.

Finally, I will reintroduce the legislation to require the U.S.
Postal Service to issue and sell a semi-postal stamp, with the proceeds
helping to fund Alzheimer's research at the National Institutes of
Health. This would encourage concerned individuals to get involved and
contribute to Alzheimer's research efforts, just as many have done in
the case of the popular and successful Breast Cancer Research semi-
postal stamp.

Our Nation is at a critical crossroads. The situation requires
decisive action to search for a cure and protect the millions of
Americans currently living with Alzheimer's disease. Together, we must
take every possible action to improve treatments for Alzheimer's
patients, support caregivers, and invest in research to find a cure for
this dreadful disease.

Once again, I want to thank John Garamendi, my colleague from
California, whom I have worked with for many, many years, for again
organizing yet another night Special Order.

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Ms. MAXINE WATERS of California. Well, thank you so very, very much,
Mr. Garamendi, again, for your leadership and for affording our Members
the opportunity to have shared their experiences because all of what we
learn as we serve as caregivers who happen to be relatives and friends,
that information is going to be very valuable to our researchers.
Because of you, we are going to be able to get those stories out. Thank
you so very much.

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