Alzheimer’s disease is the most expensive condition in the nation, costing $236 billion a year, and nearly one in every five dollars spent by Medicare is on people with Alzheimer’s or another dementia. Costs are expected to soar to more than $1 trillion in 2050.

Eliminating Alzheimer’s disease will require increasing the federal commitment to Alzheimer’s research to a level that better reflects the impact of Alzheimer’s disease on individuals, families and society.

As an Alzheimer’s Association advocate, I am very grateful to Sen. Angus King for his continued support on Alzheimer’s issues, including signing on to the HOPE for Alzheimer’s Act.

The Senate Labor-HHS Appropriations Subcommittee has just approved a $400 million increase in research funding at NIH for fiscal year 2017. I urge Sen. King to support this funding and encourage his peers to join him.

Dementia destroys a person’s brain by making them lose their ability to function, and leads them to an early death. My family witnessed this firsthand with what happened to our mother. We want this disease to be prevented for individuals and families in the future. Alzheimer’s is not a normal part of aging. It’s a progressive brain disease without any cure.

During Alzheimer’s & Brain Awareness Month, learn the 10 warning signs of Alzheimer’s disease and how to recognize them in yourself and others at alz.org/10signs.

Learn more about how the Alzheimer’s Association needs your help to uncover the truth about Alzheimer’s at alz.org/abam.

Cathy Walters
Hollis Center