Congress is making Alzheimer's a priority!

I recently had the opportunity to travel to Washington DC with 24 other Georgians to advocate for legislation and funding that will improve the lives of people living with Alzheimer’s and other dementias and lead us to a cure for this dreaded disease. We represented every Congressional district in Georgia and we were joined by 1,200 other advocates from across the country! On Tuesday, June 19th we painted Capitol Hill Purple together. I was able to participate in a meeting with staff of both Senators Isakson and Perdue and hear numerous constituents share their personal stories of the impact of the disease on their lives and the lives of their loved ones. I also joined two fellow constituents in D06 to meet with Elisabeth Conklin of Representative Karen Handel’s staff. I had the opportunity to thank her for the Congresswoman’s support on the BOLD Infrastructure for Alzheimer’s Act (BOLD) that will address Alzheimer’s as a public health crisis. We also had the opportunity to ask for her support on the Palliative and Hospice Education and Training Act (PCHETA) that will increase the palliative care workforce and educate our current and future healthcare providers about end of life care which is so critical to avoiding unwanted hospitalizations at the end of life. We also discussed the need for increased Alzheimer’s Research funding for NIH that a cure can be found for this disease that is the most expensive disease in America costing $277B Billion in 2018- mostly borne by Medicaid and Medicare.

We all learned this week that our efforts were effective. PCHETA passed the House Sub-committee favorably and the Senate Appropriations Committee recommended $425M increase for Alzheimer’s Research funding. I will continue to advocate for this important issue as every 65 seconds someone in the US develops the disease and 1 in 3 seniors dies with Alzheimer’s another dementia. Join me in this fight by visiting https://www.alz.org/get-involved-now/advocate!

Sincerely,

MaryLea Boatwright Quinn, social worker, constituent of D06, and Alzheimer’s advocate