Washington – Senators Evan Bayh (D-IN) and Susan Collins (R-ME) today
introduced legislation to create the country’s first national office responsible
for leading government efforts to treat and prevent Alzheimer’s disease. Located
within the Department of Health and Human Services, the National Alzheimer’s
Project Office would coordinate and oversee federal research on Alzheimer’s
disease to develop a plan to combat the disease and to eventually develop a
cure.

“Alzheimer’s disease is a debilitating illness that affects more than 5
million Americans and their families every day,” said Bayh, a member of the
Senate Special Committee on Aging. “Creating the National Alzheimer’s Project
Office will ensure we get better research, improved patient care and hopefully a
cure for this devastating disease. At a time when medical research funds are too
scarce, it is critical that every dollar spent on Alzheimer’s disease be used to
get the best possible care for patients.”

“Alzheimer’s is a devastating disease that takes a tremendous emotional and
economic toll on individuals and their families,” Collins said. “While there
have been promising advances in research and treatment to combat this disease,
our nation needs a more effective, coordinated national strategy aimed at
preventing, delaying and finding a cure for Alzheimer’s. This legislation, which
would coordinate a strong and sustained federal research effort, represents a
critical step toward that goal. This is particularly important now, at a time
when the baby boom generation is aging and moving into the years of highest risk
for the disease.”

“On behalf of the millions of people living with Alzheimer’s and the millions
more at risk of developing this terminal disease in the future, the Alzheimer’s
Association is grateful for the leadership of Senators Bayh and Collins,” said
Robert J. Egge, the Alzheimer’s Association’s Vice President of Public Policy
and Advocacy. “This legislation, if enacted, would significantly improve the
nation’s ability to overcome the rapidly mounting Alzheimer crisis.”

Alzheimer’s disease is a progressive, disabling and terminal disease of the
mind and body. All those who have Alzheimer’s disease will eventually require
around-the-clock care. Approximately 5.3 million Americans have Alzheimer’s
disease, and that number is estimated to reach 7.7 million by 2030. Twenty-three
percent of all Americans have had to care for a parent or relative with
Alzheimer’s.

The bipartisan National Alzheimer’s Project Act follows through on a key
recommendation from the Alzheimer’s Study Group, which issued a report in 2007
calling on Congress to create a national office dedicated to addressing the
disease.

Read the official press release here.