USAgainstAlzheimer’s Applauds Senate Committee Approval of $84 Million Increase in Funding for NIA

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USAgainstAlzheimer’s Applauds Senate Appropriations Committee Approval of $84 Million Increase in Funding for NIA Alzheimer’s Research and $20 Million for Alzheimer’s Services and Support

USAgainstAlzheimer’s also calls for an even more rapid growth in research resource allocations to Alzheimer’s

 

WASHINGTON, D.C. – The Senate Appropriations Committee yesterday included in its fiscal year (FY) 2014 bill an $84 million increase in funding for critical research at the National Institutes of Health’s National Institute on Aging (NIA) to be applied towards the prevention, treatment and cure of Alzheimer’s. Additionally, yesterday’s mark-up allocates $20 million in funding specifically for the new Alzheimer’s Disease Initiative, which will bolster training and other resources for long-term care service providers and individual Alzheimer’s caregivers.

 

Alzheimer’s disease impacts one in three seniors in the United States, and costs the country $203 billion annually. By 2050, Alzheimer’s-related expenses are projected to reach $1 trillion per year.

 

George Vradenburg, chairman of USAgainstAlzheimer’s, member of the Advisory Council on Alzheimer’s Research, Care, and Services, convener of the Global CEO Initiative on Alzheimer’s Disease and member of the Commission on Long-Term Care released the following statement in response to the Committee’s actions:

 

“I applaud the Senate Appropriations Committee for including a critical $84 million in funding for Alzheimer’s and other disease research at the NIA in its FY 2014 bill, as well as an additional $20 million for the new Alzheimer’s Disease Initiative that will support the training of caregivers and healthcare providers.

 

“Researchers believe that preventing or effectively treating Alzheimer’s by 2025 is achievable, but only with adequate resources – both public and private – dedicated to the cause. The commitment the Committee has made brings us one small but critical step closer to achieving this goal.

 

“Beyond yesterday’s important step forward, however, we require the political will to mobilize a sustained growth in research resources to break the current trajectory of this disease and to address the enormity of the health and fiscal crisis Alzheimer’s promises in coming years.  We cannot simply embrace incremental steps along a ‘business-as-usual’ path if we are truly committed to slowing the rapid growth in healthcare costs due to Alzheimer’s. This is why we are urging Congress to double current funding allocated to Alzheimer’s research and to ramp up annual research allocations to $2 billion in order to meet the urgency and scale of the challenge that lies ahead.”

 

For more information or to speak to George Vradenburg, please contact Kyle Moler at [email protected] or 202-478-6173.

 

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USAgainstAlzheimer’s is a 501(c)(4) national advocacy campaign and advocacy network committed to stopping Alzheimer’s by 2020. An independent non-profit organization working in partnership with the Alzheimer’s community, USAgainstAlzheimer’s works to stop the disease by advancing policies that support research for a cure. For more information about USAgainstAlzheimer’s, please visit: http://www.usagainstalzheimers.org.