[Congressional Record Volume 158, Number 121 (Tuesday, September 11, 2012)]
[House]
[Pages H5790-H5791]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                              {time}  1500
 MISSING ALZHEIMER'S DISEASE PATIENT ALERT PROGRAM REAUTHORIZATION ACT 
                                OF 2012

  Mr. SMITH of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass 
the bill (H.R. 2800) to amend the Violent Crime Control and Law 
Enforcement Act of 1994 to reauthorize the Missing Alzheimer's Disease 
Patient Alert Program, as amended.
  The Clerk read the title of the bill.
  The text of the bill is as follows:

                               H.R. 2800

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

     SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

       This Act may be cited as the ``Missing Alzheimer's Disease 
     Patient Alert Program Reauthorization Act of 2012''.

     SEC. 2. REAUTHORIZATION OF THE MISSING ALZHEIMER'S DISEASE 
                   PATIENT ALERT PROGRAM.

       Section 240001 of the Violent Crime Control and Law 
     Enforcement Act of 1994 (42 U.S.C. 14181) is amended--
       (1) by amending subsection (a) to read as follows:
       ``(a) Grant.--Subject to the availability of appropriations 
     to carry out this section, the Attorney General, through the 
     Bureau of Justice Assistance, shall award competitive grants 
     to nonprofit organizations to assist such organizations in 
     paying for the costs of planning, designing, establishing, 
     and operating locally based, proactive programs to protect 
     and locate missing patients with Alzheimer's disease and 
     related dementias.'';
       (2) in subsection (b), by inserting ``competitive'' after 
     ``to receive a'';
       (3) by amending subsection (c) to read as follows:
       ``(c) Preference.--In awarding grants under subsection (a), 
     the Attorney General shall give preference to national 
     nonprofit organizations that have experience working with 
     patients, and families of patients, with Alzheimer's disease 
     and related dementias.''; and
       (4) by amending subsection (d) to read as follows:
       ``(d) Authorization of Appropriations.--There are 
     authorized to be appropriated to carry out this section 
     $1,000,000 for each of the fiscal years 2013 through 2017.''.

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from 
Texas (Mr. Smith) and the gentlewoman from California (Ms. Waters) each 
will control 20 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Texas.


                             General Leave

  Mr. SMITH of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I ask that all Members have 5 
legislative days within which to revise and extend and include 
extraneous materials on H.R. 2800, as amended, currently under 
consideration.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentleman from Texas?
  There was no objection.
  Mr. SMITH of Texas. I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  Mr. Speaker, H.R. 2800, the Missing Alzheimer's Disease Patient Alert 
Program Reauthorization Act of 2012, is sponsored by the gentlewoman 
from California (Ms. Waters). I thank her for her work on this issue.
  Alzheimer's disease is a serious condition that is becoming more and 
more prevalent. The disease affects as many as 5 million people in this 
country, or one in eight older Americans, and a new person develops 
Alzheimer's every 69 seconds. This pace is expected to increase with 
time.
  It is estimated that more than half of the people with Alzheimer's or 
other types of dementia will become lost from their families or 
caretakers at some point. Many of these people cannot remember their 
name, their family members or their address. This makes returning home 
safely difficult for law enforcement officers and Good Samaritans.
  As is true whenever a person goes missing, time is of the essence 
when attempting to locate a lost Alzheimer's patient. One study found 
an almost 50 percent mortality rate for Alzheimer's patients who are 
not found within 24 hours of becoming lost.
  To address the problem of missing Alzheimer's patients, Congress 
created the Missing Alzheimer's Disease Patient Alert Program in 1996. 
This Justice Department program provides grants to locally based 
organizations to protect and locate missing patients with Alzheimer's 
disease and related dementia. Congress has appropriated money for this 
every year since its creation.
  The Justice Department has provided grants to several programs, 
including the Alzheimer's Association's Safe Return program. In this 
program, people with Alzheimer's and dementia are registered in a data 
base and receive a bracelet that indicates the individual is memory 
impaired. The bracelet also includes a 24-hour emergency response 
number to call if the person is found wandering or has a medical 
emergency.
  The Alzheimer's Association reports a 99 percent success rate for 
reuniting enrolled missing individuals with their caretakers through 
the Safe Return program.
  H.R. 2800, the Missing Alzheimer's Disease Patient Alert Program 
Reauthorization Act of 2012, reauthorizes this program at $1 million a 
year for 5 years. This authorization level reflects the fiscal year 
2012 appropriations level. H.R. 2800 helps to ensure that people with 
Alzheimer's disease and other forms of dementia are returned safely 
home when they become lost.
  Again, I want to thank the gentlewoman from California (Ms. Waters) 
for her leadership on this issue, and I encourage my colleagues to join 
me in support of this bill.
  I reserve the balance of my time.
  Ms. WATERS. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  I thank Chairman Lamar Smith for his support for H.R. 2800, the 
Missing Alzheimer's Disease Patient Alert Program Reauthorization Act. 
This bill reauthorizes a small, but effective, program that assists 
local law enforcement and protects vulnerable people with Alzheimer's 
disease. I appreciate the chairman's willingness to work with me and 
move this bill forward.
  Alzheimer's disease currently affects an estimated 5.3 million 
Americans, and that number will multiply in the coming decades as our 
population grows. The Alzheimer's Association estimates that 7.7 
million Americans will have Alzheimer's by the year 2030, and 11 to 16 
million Americans will have the disease by the year 2050.
  One great risk for Alzheimer's patients is wandering away from home. 
According to the Alzheimer's Association, more than 60 percent of 
Alzheimer's patients are likely to wander. Wanderers are vulnerable to 
dehydration, weather conditions, traffic hazards, and individuals who 
prey on vulnerable seniors. Up to 50 percent of Alzheimer's patients 
who wander will become seriously injured or die if they

[[Page H5791]]

are not found within 24 hours of their departure from home. Wanderers 
often cannot remember who they are or where they live and cannot assist 
law enforcement officials and other first responders who try to help 
them.
  The Missing Alzheimer's Disease Patient Alert Program is a Department 
of Justice program that provides competitive grants to nonprofit 
organizations to assist in paying for the cost of planning, designing, 
establishing, and operating programs to protect and locate missing 
patients with Alzheimer's disease and related dementias. These grants 
help local communities and public safety agencies quickly identify 
persons with Alzheimer's disease who wander or who are missing and 
reunite them with their families.
  The program was originally authorized in 1996, but has been operating 
under an expired authorization since 1998. H.R. 2800 reauthorizes the 
program and authorizations $1 million per year in appropriations for 
fiscal years 2013 through 2017. This authorization level will allow the 
program to operate at the funding year 2012 funding level for the next 
5 years.
  This program is extremely cost effective. An annual appropriation of 
simply $1 million would easily result in millions more in savings for 
the Federal Government by allowing more Alzheimer's patients to remain 
at home with their families, thereby reducing nursing-home utilization 
and saving Medicare and Medicaid expenses.
  H.R. 2800 is cosponsored by 18 Members of Congress, including 
Congressman Chris Smith and Congressman Ed Markey, the cochairs of the 
Bipartisan Congressional Task Force on Alzheimer's Disease. The bill is 
also supported by both the Alzheimer's Association and the Alzheimer's 
Foundation of America.
  This program saves law enforcement officials valuable time and allows 
them to focus on other security concerns. It also reduces unintentional 
injuries and deaths among Alzheimer's patients, brings peace of mind to 
their families, and thus allows more patients to remain at home with 
people who love them.
  I urge my colleagues to support this bill, and I yield back the 
balance of my time.
  Mr. SMITH of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
  Mr. SMITH of New Jersey. Mr. Speaker, I would like to thank Chairman 
Lamar Smith and Ranking Member John Conyers for advancing this bill 
through the Judiciary Committee. And, I especially want to thank 
Congresswoman Maxine Waters for her commitment and hard work over the 
years in support of the Missing Alzheimer's Disease Patient Alert 
Program.
  Alzheimer's disease robs millions of individuals in the U.S. of their 
ability to recognize once familiar places and faces or even to remember 
their names and addresses.
  Not everyone with Alzheimer's wanders, but an estimated 60% wander at 
some point in the disease, and many of those wander repeatedly. They 
easily become disoriented and lost, even in their own neighborhood. 
While wandering is common, it also can be extremely dangerous, 
particularly for the unprotected and the mentally and physically 
vulnerable. If not found within 24 hours, up to half of those who 
wander risk serious injury or death. And their friends and familieis 
are beside themselves with worry.
  Since its inception in FY1996 and the awarding of a grant to the 
Alzheimer's Association, the Missing Alzheimer's Disease Patient Alert 
Program has been a literal life-line, helping in the safe return of 
many thousands of wanderers.
  The program has been funded every year since 1996 and funding has 
been used to establish a nationwide emergency response service for 
individuals with Alzheimer's or another dementia who wander or have a 
medical emergency, including an identification and enrollment system.
  H.R. 2800 reauthorizes for five years this Department of Justice 
Program that provides grants to nonprofit organizations to operate 
programs designed to help local communities and law enforcement 
officials quickly identify wandering dementia patients and reunite them 
with their families.
  The program has a 98% success rate for safely returning program 
enrollees who were reported missing. The program also assists 
individuals with dementia who are not enrolled, with an 88% success 
rate. I encourage all of my colleagues to vote for this important 
legislation.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the 
gentleman from Texas (Mr. Smith) that the House suspend the rules and 
pass the bill, H.R. 2800, as amended.
  The question was taken; and (two-thirds being in the affirmative) the 
rules were suspended and the bill, as amended, was passed.
  A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.

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