Millions of people worldwide have some form of dementia and suffer from a steady deterioration of memory and cognitive skills. Yet the vast majority of those with Alzheimer’s and related dementias have not received a diagnosis of their condition, and of those who have, many are unable to access the standard of care that they need.
Earlier in 2017, the World Health Organization (WHO) adopted a global plan to address Alzheimer’s and set targets for countries to meet to establish plans for Alzheimer’s awareness, research, treatment, and prevention. WHO called on countries who have not yet adopted their own plans on Alzheimer’s to do so.
“Today, 47 million people worldwide live with Alzheimer’s disease and other forms of dementia, and this number is estimated to grow to 131 million by 2050 as populations age,” Rep. Chris Smith (NJ-04), Chairman of the House panel on global health, stated. “Congress has both a moral and practical imperative to act.”
Smith will be convening a hearing to review the state of care for Alzheimer’s patients, and prevention and treatments for Alzheimer’s Disease. Witnesses from the National Institutes of Health will share what the U.S. government has done to address Alzheimer’s research and treatment worldwide, while other witnesses from the medical profession will discuss patient care and the current state of Alzheimer’s research.
Who:
Chairman Smith (NJ-04), Senior Member of the House Foreign Affairs Committee and Chairman of the House Subcommittee on Africa, Global Health, Global Human Rights, and International Organizations; other members of the subcommittee
Witness:
Panel I
Marie Bernard, M.D.
Deputy Director
National Institute on Aging
National Institutes of Health
Roger Glass, M.D.
Director
Fogarty International Center
National Institutes of Health
Panel II
Mary Mittelman, Dr.P.H.
Research Professor
Alzheimer's Disease and Related Dementias Family Support Program
New York University
Richard Mohs, Ph.D.
Chief Scientific Officer
Global Alzheimer’s Platform Foundation
Mr. Michael Splaine
Principal
Splaine Consulting
What: House hearing on a global update on Alzheimer’s Disease
When: Wednesday, November 29, 2017 2:00 PM
Where: Rayburn House Office Building, Room 2172 (first floor)
Smith, co-founder and co-chair of the bipartisan, bicameral Congressional Task Force on Alzheimer’s Disease, co-authored the National Alzheimer’s Project Act which became law in 2011, and established a benchmark for the U.S. to produce a successful treatment and prevention of Alzheimer’s Disease by 2025.
“The total estimated global cost of addressing this condition today is $818 million, but by as early as next year, it is estimated that this cost will rise to at least one billion,” Smith said. “This hearing is intended to examine the existing and potential options for prevention and treatment of this often devastating disease.”
