USA2 SPOTLIGHT

A December 4, 2017 UsAgainstAlzheimer's press release announced a new report developed with the USC Roybal Institute on Aging, Millennials and Dementia Caregiving in the United States. The findings show that one out of six millennial caregivers is caring for someone living with dementia. In response, UsAgainstAlzheimer’s and The Youth Movement Against Alzheimer’s are launching the Youth Against Alzheimer’s Coalition to position Alzheimer’s as an urgent economic and public health issue impacting families across generations.

(ICYMI) A December 2, 2017 The Progress-Index article by Rita Altman of Sunrise Senior Living posits that it’s time for everyone to get involved in the fight against Alzheimer’s disease. According to UsAgainstAlzheimer’s Co-Founder and Chairman George Vradenburg, “The earlier we detect a disease, the better our chances are of stopping it and curing it. With the XPRIZE we will employ global crowdsourcing and harness emerging technologies to unleash a new era of interventions that would have the best chance of saving millions of lives.”

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A December 3, 2017 St. Louis Post-Dispatch article reported on a study of 50 participants, from the Washington University Medical Center, looking at the driving habits of older adults to determine how they change with age and with early indicators of Alzheimer’s disease. Researchers hope to get up to 300 participants and study their driving habits for a minimum of two years. The ultimate goal is for the data to assist in interventions as driving habits decline, so older adults can stay safely on the road longer.

A December 2, 2017 The Washington Post article profiled the legendary career of civil rights attorney and law professor Charles J. Ogletree, Jr. Ogletree has Alzheimer’s disease, but for years his sharp brain and impeccable memory were his greatest assets. According to President Obama, one of Ogletree’s law students, “Charles has always been more than a mentor to me and Michelle; he’s been a wonderful friend and generous presence in our lives. We love him and Pamela dearly, and we’re so proud of the way they’re choosing to live with Alzheimer's — to continue teaching and inspiring others the same way they’ve taught and inspired us.”

CAREGIVER CORNER

According to a December 2, 2017 BBC News article, former UK Prime Minister David Cameron indicates that the UK government still has not met the challenge of funding social and dementia care costs for their aging population. In office, he had pledged to set a cap on lifetime care costs. He describes dementia as a "world of darkness.”