[Congressional Bills 111th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 1555 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

111th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                S. 1555

      To establish the Office of the National Alzheimer's Project.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                             July 31, 2009

   Mr. Martinez (for himself, Mr. Bayh, Ms. Collins, Mr. Bennet, Mr. 
Feingold, and Mr. Tester) introduced the following bill; which was read 
 twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and 
                                Pensions

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
      To establish the Office of the National Alzheimer's Project.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; FINDINGS.

    (a) Short Title.--This Act may be cited as the ``Office of the 
National Alzheimer's Project Act''.
    (b) Findings.--Congress finds that according to the 2009 
Alzheimer's Study Group National Strategic Plan and the 2009 
Alzheimer's Disease Facts and Figures report of the Alzheimer's 
Association--
            (1) Alzheimer's disease is a progressive, debilitating, 
        terminal disease with no known cure;
            (2) Alzheimer's disease was the sixth leading cause of 
        death in the United States for all ages in 2006 and the fifth 
        leading cause of death for people age 65 and older;
            (3) currently, an estimated 5,300,000 Americans of all ages 
        have Alzheimer's disease, and 13 percent of people age 65 and 
        older have Alzheimer's disease;
            (4) of those with Alzheimer's disease some minority 
        populations are disproportionately suffering from the disease;
            (5) there are 78,000,000 people in the baby boom 
        generation, and in 2011, the first baby boomers will turn 65, 
        and by 2029, all baby boomers will be at least 65 years old;
            (6) the number of people aged 65 and older with Alzheimer's 
        disease is estimated to reach 7,700,000 in 2030, more than a 50 
        percent increase from the 5,100,000 aged 65 and older who are 
        currently affected;
            (7) the 85 years and older population currently comprises 
        nearly 50 percent of the individuals with Alzheimer's disease, 
        or about 2,700,000 people, and by the time the first wave of 
        baby boomers reaches age 85 years (2031), there will be an 
        estimated 3,500,000 people aged 85 and older with Alzheimer's;
            (8) in 2008, 9,900,000 unpaid caregivers provided care 
        valued at $94,000,000,000 for a person with Alzheimer's disease 
        or other dementia;
            (9) total per-person payments from all sources for health 
        and long-term care were three times higher for Medicare 
        beneficiaries with Alzheimer's disease: $33,007 compared to 
        $10,603;
            (10) in 2009 the Federal Government will spend more than 
        $100,000,000,000 through Medicare and Medicaid to care for 
        those with Alzheimer's disease;
            (11) if the United States follows current trends the 
        Federal Government will spend more than $1,000,000,000,000 per 
        year by 2050 on Alzheimer's disease care; and
            (12) between 2010 and 2050 Medicare and Medicaid programs 
        are projected to spend $20,000,000,000,000 for Alzheimer's 
        disease care.

SEC. 2. OFFICE OF THE NATIONAL ALZHEIMER'S PROJECT.

    (a) Establishment of Office.--There is established in the Office of 
the President the Office of the National Alzheimer's Project (referred 
to in this Act as the ``Office'').
    (b) Purpose of the Office.--The Office shall--
            (1) accelerate the development of treatments that would 
        prevent, halt, or reverse the course of Alzheimer's;
            (2) be responsible for the creation and maintenance of an 
        integrated national plan to overcome Alzheimer's;
            (3) help to coordinate the health care and treatment of 
        citizens with Alzheimer's;
            (4) ensure the inclusion of ethnic and racial populations 
        at higher risk for Alzheimer's or least likely to receive care, 
        in clinical, research, and service efforts with the purpose of 
        decreasing health disparities in Alzheimer's; and
            (5) coordinate with international bodies to integrate and 
        inform the fight against Alzheimer's globally.
    (c) Director of the Office.--
            (1) Appointment.--The President by and with the advice and 
        consent of the Senate shall appoint a Director of the Office.
            (2) Duties of the director.--
                    (A) In general.--The Director of the Office shall--
                            (i) oversee the creation and updating of 
                        the national plan described in subparagraph 
                        (B);
                            (ii) use discretionary authority to 
                        evaluate all Federal programs around 
                        Alzheimer's, including budget requests and 
                        approvals; and
                            (iii) prepare and submit to the President 
                        the annual budget estimate for the Office.
                    (B) National plan.--The Director of the Office 
                shall carry out an annual assessment of the Nation's 
                progress in preparing for the escalating burden of 
                Alzheimer's, including both implementation steps and 
                recommendations for priority actions based on the 
                assessment.
            (3) Service by director.--The Director of the Office shall 
        serve--
                    (A) on the advisory board of the Office of Science 
                and Technology to promote research efforts into 
                mechanisms to slow and stop the development of 
                Alzheimer's for those at risk of developing the 
                disease, or may appoint a designee to sit on such 
                board; and
                    (B) on the Domestic Policy Council to represent 
                those who have or will develop Alzheimer's, including 
                on matters of housing, transportation, and education.
    (d) Advisory Council.--
            (1) In general.--There is established in the Office an 
        Advisory Council on Alzheimer's Research and Treatment 
        (referred to in this Act as the ``Advisory Council'').
            (2) Membership.--
                    (A) In general.--The Advisory Council shall be 
                comprised of the following:
                            (i) A designee of the Office of Science of 
                        the Department of Energy.
                            (ii) A designee of the Office of the 
                        Secretary of the Department of Health and Human 
                        Services.
                            (iii) A designee of the Administration on 
                        Aging.
                            (iv) A designee of the Centers for Medicare 
                        & Medicaid Services.
                            (v) A designee of the Indian Health 
                        Service.
                            (vi) A designee of the Office of the 
                        Director of the National Institutes of Health.
                            (vii) The Surgeon General.
                            (viii) A designee of the National Science 
                        Foundation.
                            (ix) A designee of the Department of 
                        Veterans Affairs.
                    (B) Non-federal members.--
                            (i) In general.--In addition to the members 
                        outlined in subparagraph (A), the Advisory 
                        Council shall include 12 members from outside 
                        the Federal Government, including 2 members who 
                        are patient advocate members and 2 members who 
                        represent States, and members appointed 
                        pursuant to clause (ii).
                            (ii) Congressional appointments.--
                                    (I) In general.--In addition to the 
                                members outlined in subparagraph (A) 
                                and clause (i), the majority and 
                                minority leaders of the Senate and the 
                                Speaker and minority leader of the 
                                House of Representatives shall each 
                                appoint 2 members from the pool 
                                described in clause (II) to the 
                                Advisory Council for a 2-year term, 
                                with each such member eligible to be 
                                reappointed.
                                    (II) Remaining non-federal 
                                members.--The remaining non-Federal 
                                members shall be representatives of 
                                academia, research, health and elder 
                                care delivery (both community-based and 
                                institutional), technology, or other 
                                related sectors.
                                    (III) Vacancies.--Any member 
                                appointed under this clause to fill a 
                                vacancy occurring prior to the 
                                expiration of the term for which the 
                                member's predecessor was appointed 
                                shall be appointed for the remainder of 
                                such term. A member appointed under 
                                this clause shall serve until the 
                                member's replacement has been 
                                appointed.
            (3) Meetings.--The Advisory Council shall meet quarterly 
        and such meetings shall be open to the public.
            (4) Advice.--The Advisory Council shall advise the Director 
        of the Office.
            (5) Annual report.--The Advisory Council shall provide to 
        the Director of the Office--
                    (A) recommendations for information to be included 
                in the annual report to Congress by the Office; and
                    (B) an annually updated national plan.
    (e) Annual Report.--The Director of the Office shall submit to 
Congress--
            (1) an annual report that includes an evaluation of all 
        nationally and federally funded efforts in Alzheimer's 
        research, clinical care, institutional, and home- and 
        community-based programs and their outcomes; and
            (2) an annually updated national plan.
    (f) Sunset.--The Office shall expire on December 31, 2025.
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