USAGAINSTALZHEIMER'S CALLS ON U.S. TO CREATE GLOBAL FUND TO FIGHT ALZHEIMER'S

Share:

USAgainstAlzheimer’s Calls on U.S. to Create Global Fund to Fight Alzheimer’s

The fund would be modeled after The Global Fund to Fight AIDS, and intended to supercharge innovative Alzheimer’s research

WASHINGTON, DC – George Vradenburg, Chairman and Co-founder of USAgainstAlzheimer’s and Convener of The Global CEO Initiative (CEOi) on Alzheimer’s Disease, today testified before the House Subcommittee on Africa, Global Health, Global Human Rights and International Organizations, urging Congress to lead the way in establishing a global fund for Alzheimer’s.

The hearing was convened by the House Subcommittee to discuss the results of the recent G8 Dementia Summit held in London last December, where world leaders committed to stopping the disease by 2025. Every four seconds, someone somewhere in the world is diagnosed with Alzheimer’s or Dementia, a disease that costs the world $605 billion annually but remains dramatically underfunded.

George Vradenburg released this statement below following the hearing:

“Alzheimer’s and Dementia today present an unprecedented health epidemic that threatens global economic growth and fiscal stability.

“Fifteen years ago, we faced a similar threat in HIV/AIDS, but through U.S. and international G8 leadership, we created the foundation for what would come to be called the Global Fund to Fight AIDS and PEPFAR.

“These programs, which made once unthinkable progress in reducing new HIV/AIDS diagnoses and deaths, should serve as a guide in our fight against Alzheimer’s.

“The time is now for the United States and other G8 countries to develop a Global Alzheimer’s Fund modeled after the bold and innovative programs created by the international community to address HIV/AIDS.

“Through a unified world community of governments, scientists, industry and NGOs, we can leverage the funds necessary to attack a disease of massive devastation, and in doing so, prevent a catastrophe that will rob millions around the world of their loved ones.”

###

USAgainstAlzheimer's is an independent, non-profit organization and advocacy campaign committed to stopping Alzheimer's by 2020. USAgainstAlzheimer's works to speed the discovery of a treatment or cure for Alzheimer's by advancing policy and resources that support innovative Alzheimer's research. For more information, visit www.usagainstalzheimers.org.

The Global CEO Initiative (CEOi) on Alzheimer’s Disease is an organization of private-sector leaders who have joined together with government to provide business leadership in the fight against Alzheimer’s. The CEO Initiative seeks to partner with public leaders to transform the disease from a social, health, and economic crisis into an opportunity for healthy aging and innovation in research and care. Its members include: AC Immune, Bank of America, Banner Health, GE, Home Instead Senior Care, Janssen, Eli Lilly and Co., Merck, Nestlé Health Science, Pfizer, Takeda Pharmaceuticals and Sanofi. The CEO Initiative believes that, during this era of aging populations, it will take visionary, coordinated, goal oriented leadership of public and private leaders working together to solve our greatest challenges. For more information, visit http://www.ceoalzheimersinitiative.org/