Washington, DC – USAgainstAlzheimer’s, an innovative and transformational organization demanding greater urgency in the fight against Alzheimer's disease and dementia, today called on Health and Human Services Secretary Sylvia Mathews Burwell to attend the World Health Organization (WHO) First Ministerial Meeting on Dementia. The meeting, to which the health ministers of 62 nations are invited, will be held on March 16 and 17 in Geneva, Switzerland.
“When the World Health Organization convenes the first-ever Ministerial Conference on Global Action Against Dementia later this month, it is critical that the United States be represented by Secretary Burwell, who leads the execution of our nation’s strategy to address Alzheimer’s,” said George Vradenburg, chairman and founder of USAgainstAlzheimer’s, convener of The Global CEO Initiative on Alzheimer’s Disease, and a member of the World Dementia Council.
“Despite the fact that U.S. leadership was critical to advancing the G8’s adoption of a goal similar to our own of preventing and treating Alzheimer’s by 2025, I am disappointed that our level of engagement since the December 2013 G8 Global Dementia Summit has been, to say the least, underwhelming and widely viewed as such by public and private leaders in the field. It’s critical that the U.S. step up its level of commitment and senior level political participation in global Alzheimer’s and dementia meetings or we will forgo our leadership on the world stage on this critical national and global health issue and its devastating economic consequences.”
Since the G8 Dementia Summit was held in London in December 2013, the global effort against Alzheimer’s and dementia has grown tremendously. This work includes the formation of the World Dementia Council; the convening of G8/G7 legacy meetings by Prime Minister Cameron of the United Kingdom, Health Minister Ambrose of Canada, and Prime Minister Abe of Japan and the recognition by an increasing number of international organizations (United Nations, WHO, and the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development) of the commitments needed to address the global challenge of Alzheimer’s. Leaders of more than 40 nations have confirmed their attendance at the WHO Ministerial meeting, making conspicuous the absence of a high-ranking United States government official. Vradenburg is attending in his capacity as a member of the World Dementia Council.
NAPA Recommendations
The WHO meeting comes on the heels of yesterday’s release of the 2015 National Plan recommendations by the public members of the Advisory Council on Alzheimer’s Research, Care, and Services -- a diverse group of stakeholders from the Alzheimer’s community who, with designees from the multiple federal agencies with Alzheimer’s and dementia programs or initiatives under their purview, make up the 26-member Advisory Council. The Council, of which Vradenburg is a member, is charged with advising Secretary Burwell on the development of a national Alzheimer’s strategy and its annual updates. The council was created by the National Alzheimer’s Project Act (NAPA), which was enacted in early January 2011. One of the recommendations is that the 2015 National Plan should outline specific contributions being made by the US government to the international initiatives needed to fulfill our commitments made at the 2013 Dementia Summit in London, including how the US government intends to raise the level of engagement and seniority of governmental officials engaged in those efforts.
The 12 recommendations – which focus on increased research funding, clinical care, and long-term services and supports – are designed to inform HHS’ 2015 Update to NAPA and the larger Administration and Congressional actions on Alzheimer’s and dementia. Included in the recommendations is the urgent need for increased annual federal research of at least $2 billion per year to meet the 2025 goal and the call for the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to identify the total science-driven funding needs for the budget year and the scale of needs anticipated through 2025.
“Three years ago, we set a bold goal of preventing and treating Alzheimer’s by 2025. But the only way this goal will be met is by ensuring our plan and its annual update remain focused on achieving it. I urge Secretary Burwell to incorporate all of these recommendations in the next iteration of the plan,” Vradenburg said.
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USAgainstAlzheimer’s is an innovative and transformational advocacy organization demanding a solution to Alzheimer's. Driven by the suffering of millions of families, USAgainstAlzheimer’s presses for greater urgency from government, industry and the scientific community in the quest for an Alzheimer's cure – accomplishing this through effective leadership, collaborative advocacy, and strategic investments.
Founded in 2010, USAgainstAlzheimer’s has worked across sectors to: (1) secure the national goal of preventing and effectively treating Alzheimer’s by 2025 and helping secure more than $360 million in additional public funding for Alzheimer’s research over the past few years; (2) drive global efforts that resulted in the leaders of the world’s most powerful nations, the G7 group, to embrace a similar 2025 goal and to call for greater levels of research investment and collaboration; and (3) forge industry commitments to improve efficiencies for an expedited drug discovery and approval process.