USA2 SPOTLIGHT

An October 5, 2017 McKnight’s Senior Living article reported on the strain to local, state and federal budgets because of the increasing incidence of Alzheimer's disease. These findings come from an UsAgainstAlzheimer’s report, “Hiding In Plain Sight: Social and Demographic Trends That Will Exacerbate the Impact of Alzheimer’s." According to economist Nick Eberstadt, “If an unexpected number of individuals, families and communities do indeed find themselves in crisis as a result of unexpected vulnerabilities in the face of Alzheimer's, we should take it as a given that our country's public budgets — at the federal, state and local level — will be in Alzheimer's-induced crises too.”

An October 4, 2017 Huffington Post article by Greg O’Brien, veteran journalist, author and UsAgainstAlzheimer’s Board Member, bravely and frankly explored his personal experience having Alzheimer’s disease. He utilizes the winter solstice as an allegory for dementia, “The darkness can be numbing; isolation warps the mind.” The emotions that overtake him have become uncontrollable. “The darkness can also be a time of greater confusion, anger, and explosive rage in this journey.”

An October 4, 2017 Stars and Stripes article spotlighted Shawn Taylor, who helped create VeteransAgainstAlzheimer’s, the newly-launched UsAgainstAlzheimer’s network. Her grandmother and grandfather, an Army colonel, and her mother and father, a retired lieutenant colonel and Vietnam War veteran, all had or currently have Alzheimer’s disease. According to UsA2 Co-Founder and Chairman George Vradenburg, “We’re learning far too often veterans are disproportionately affected by this disease and are at a greater risk for Alzheimer’s because of their war-related brain impairments. Alzheimer’s is a veterans’ disease.”

MUST READS

According to an October 5, 2017 Health Affairs Blog post, the Senate unanimously passed the Creating High-Quality Results and Outcomes Necessary to Improve Chronic (CHRONIC) Care Act of 2017, aiming to improve care for seniors with chronic conditions. The Act would extend the Affordable Care Act-enacted Independence at Home, improve and expand the degree to which Medicare beneficiaries can participate in managed or accountable care programs, and expand access to telehealth. There are three mandatory Government Accountability Office reports, the first of which would assess the pros and cons of a new reimbursement code for formulation of a comprehensive plan of care for beneficiaries diagnosed with a serious or life-threatening illness such as Alzheimer’s.

An October 3, 2017 Star Tribune article highlighted the measures being taken to reduce football-related head injuries in UK’s young players. On the heels of a spate of former players with Alzheimer’s disease and dementia, the Football Association and Professional Footballers' Association in England are stepping up their participation in research. According to former player Geoff Hurst, who is now an Alzheimer’s advocate, “Dementia is becoming one of the most serious illnesses and it is increasing. My involvement with the players from my squad who have got it is seeing how the families deal with it all, and it is arguably one of the most debilitating aliments families can face."