[Congressional Record Volume 159, Number 166 (Wednesday, November 20, 2013)]
[Senate]
[Pages S8365-S8368]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




SENATE RESOLUTION 303--DECLARING THAT ACHIEVING THE PRIMARY GOAL OF THE 
   NATIONAL PLAN TO ADDRESS ALZHEIMER'S DISEASE OF THE DEPARTMENT OF 
HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES TO PREVENT AND EFFECTIVELY TREAT ALZHEIMER'S 
             DISEASE BY 2025 IS AN URGENT NATIONAL PRIORITY

  Ms. COLLINS (for herself, Ms. Klobuchar, Mr. Durbin, and Mr. 
Blumenthal) submitted the following resolution; which was referred to 
the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions:

                              S. Res. 303

       Whereas the number of individuals in the United States with 
     Alzheimer's disease and related dementias (referred to in 
     this preamble as ``Alzheimer's'') is as high as 5,200,000, 
     which is more than double the number in 1980;

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       Whereas based on the trajectory of Alzheimer's, as many as 
     16,000,000 individuals in the United States may have 
     Alzheimer's by 2050;
       Whereas Alzheimer's is a global health crisis that afflicts 
     an estimated 36,000,000 individuals worldwide as of October 
     2013 and may afflict over 115,000,000 individuals by 2050;
       Whereas Alzheimer's is the 6th leading cause of death in 
     the United States;
       Whereas Alzheimer's is the only disease among the top 10 
     causes of death in the United States without an effective 
     means of prevention, treatment, or cure;
       Whereas Alzheimer's places an enormous financial strain on 
     families, the health care system, and State and Federal 
     budgets;
       Whereas in 2013, the direct costs of caring for individuals 
     with Alzheimer's will total an estimated $203,000,000,000, 
     including $142,000,000,000 in costs to the Medicare program 
     under title XVIII of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 1395 
     et seq.) and the Medicaid program under title XIX of the 
     Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 1396 et seq.);
       Whereas the annual costs of caring for individuals with 
     Alzheimer's are projected to increase from $203,000,000,000 
     in 2013 to $1,200,000,000,000 in 2050;
       Whereas a RAND Corporation study published in 2013 and 
     commissioned by the National Institute on Aging found that 
     Alzheimer's is the costliest disease in the United States, 
     costing more than cancer and heart disease;
       Whereas in 2012, an estimated 15,400,000 family members and 
     friends of individuals with Alzheimer's provided those 
     individuals with 17,500,000,000 hours of unpaid care, an 
     amount valued at more than $216,000,000;
       Whereas the global cost of Alzheimer's exceeds 
     $600,000,000,000 each year, an amount equal to approximately 
     1 percent of the world's gross domestic product;
       Whereas Alzheimer's takes an emotional and physical toll on 
     caregivers that results in a higher incidence of chronic 
     conditions, such as heart disease, cancer, and depression 
     among caregivers;
       Whereas the National Plan to Address Alzheimer's Disease of 
     the Department of Health and Human Services enables family 
     caregivers of individuals with Alzheimer's to provide care 
     while maintaining personal health and well-being;
       Whereas the National Plan to Address Alzheimer's Disease 
     supports informal caregivers by--
         (1) identifying the support needs of caregivers;
         (2) developing and disseminating modes for intervention;
         (3) providing information that caregivers need, 
     particularly in crisis situations; and
         (4) assisting caregivers in maintaining personal health 
     and well-being;
       Whereas a strong and sustained research effort is the best 
     tool to slow the progression and ultimately prevent the onset 
     of Alzheimer's;
       Whereas the National Institutes of Health spends each year 
     approximately--
         (1) $6,000,000,000 on cancer research;
         (2) $3,000,000,000 on HIV/AIDS research; and
         (3) $2,000,000,000 on cardiovascular disease research;
       Whereas while the cost to the Medicare and Medicaid 
     programs of caring for Alzheimer's patients is 
     $142,000,000,000 each year, the United States spends slightly 
     more than $500,000,000 each year on Alzheimer's research;
       Whereas the Chairman of the Advisory Council on Alzheimer's 
     Research, Care, and Services created by the National 
     Alzheimer's Project Act (42 U.S.C. 11225) has testified 
     before Congress that the United States must devote at least 
     $2,000,000,000 each year to Alzheimer's research to reach the 
     goal of preventing and effectively treating Alzheimer's by 
     2025; and
       Whereas the public members of the Advisory Council on 
     Alzheimer's Research, Care, and Services unanimously agree 
     with the testimony of the Chairman regarding the amount of 
     money required to reach the goal for 2025: Now, therefore, be 
     it
       Resolved, That the Senate--
       (1) is committed to strengthening the quality of care and 
     expanding support for individuals with Alzheimer's disease 
     and related dementias (referred to in this resolution as 
     ``Alzheimer's'') and family caregivers of individuals with 
     Alzheimer's;
       (2) declares that achieving the primary goal of the 
     National Plan to Address Alzheimer's Disease to prevent and 
     effectively treat Alzheimer's by 2025 is an urgent national 
     priority;
       (3) recognizes that bold action and dramatic increases in 
     funding are necessary to meet that goal; and
       (4) strives to--
       (A) double the amount of funding the United States spends 
     on Alzheimer's research in fiscal year 2015; and
       (B) develop a plan for fiscal years 2016 through 2019 to 
     meet the target of the Advisory Council on Alzheimer's 
     Research, Care, and Services for the United States to spend 
     $2,000,000,000 each year on Alzheimer's research.

  Ms. COLLINS. Mr. President, I am very pleased to be here on the 
Senate floor with my friend and colleague from Minnesota Senator 
Klobuchar as we submit an important resolution.
  This month is National Alzheimer's Awareness Month. Alzheimer's is a 
terrible disease that exacts a tremendous personal and economic toll on 
both the individual and the family. As have many families, mine has 
experienced the pain of Alzheimer's. I know there is no more helpless 
feeling than to watch the progression of this devastating disease. It 
is equally painful to witness the emotional and physical damage 
inflicted on family caregivers exhausted by an endless series of 36-
hour days.
  Moreover, Alzheimer's disease is the only cause of death among the 
top 10 in our Nation without a way to prevent it, to cure it, or even 
to slow its progression. More than 5 million Americans have Alzheimer's 
disease--more than double the number in 1980. Based on current 
projections, as many as 16 million Americans over the age of 65 will 
have Alzheimer's by the year 2050.
  In addition to the tremendous human suffering it causes, Alzheimer's 
costs the United States more than $200 billion a year, including $142 
billion in costs to the Medicare and Medicaid Programs. This price tag 
will increase exponentially as the baby boom generation ages. If we 
fail to change the current trajectory of Alzheimer's disease, our 
country will not only face a mounting public health crisis but an 
economic one as well. If nothing is done to slow or stop this disease, 
the Alzheimer's Association estimates that Alzheimer's will cost our 
country an astonishing $20 trillion over the next 40 years.
  It is estimated that nearly one in two baby boomers reaching the age 
of 85 will develop Alzheimer's. As a consequence, chances are the 
members of the baby boom generation will either be spending their 
golden years suffering from Alzheimer's or caring for someone who has 
it. In many ways, Alzheimer's has become the defining disease of this 
generation.
  If we are to prevent Alzheimer's from becoming the defining disease 
of the next generation, it is imperative that we dramatically increase 
our investment in Alzheimer's disease research. According to a study 
commissioned by the National Institute on Aging, Alzheimer's and other 
dementias cost the United States more than cancer and heart disease. 
This study finds that both the costs and number of people with dementia 
will more than double within 30 years--skyrocketing at a rate that 
rarely occurs with a chronic disease.
  At a time when the cost to Medicare and Medicaid of caring for 
Alzheimer's patients exceeds $140 billion a year, we are spending only 
slightly more than $500 million on Alzheimer's research. We are 
spending $142 billion under Medicare and Medicaid, more than $200 
billion overall, and yet only $500 million on research. We currently 
spend $6 billion a year for cancer research, $3 billion a year for 
research on HIV/AIDS, and $2 billion for cardiovascular research. And I 
wish to emphasize that those are always worthy investments--investments 
that have paid dividends in terms of better treatments, cures, and in 
some cases prolonged lives. Surely we can do more for Alzheimer's given 
the tremendous human and economic price of this devastating disease.
  The National Plan to Address Alzheimer's Disease was authorized by a 
bipartisan law passed in 2010 called the National Alzheimer's Project 
Act, which I authored with then-Senator Evan Bayh.
  The national plan has as its primary goal to ``prevent and 
effectively treat Alzheimer's disease by 2025.'' The chairman of the 
Advisory Council on Alzheimer's Research, Care, and Services, which was 
created by the National Alzheimer's Project Act, has testified before 
Congress that the United States must devote at least $2 billion a year 
to Alzheimer's research to achieve that goal.
  I am therefore joining with my colleague from Minnesota Senator 
Klobuchar in submitting this resolution declaring that the goal of 
preventing and effectively treating Alzheimer's by 2025 is an urgent 
national priority. Our resolution recognizes that dramatic increases in 
research funding are necessary to meet that goal and resolves that the 
Senate will strive to double the amount of funding the United States 
spends on Alzheimer's research in fiscal year 2015 and then develop a 
plan to meet the target of $2 billion a year over the next 5 years.
  Just think of the figures. We are spending some $212 billion a year 
treating, caring for people with Alzheimer's.

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All we are asking is that over the next 5 years we achieve the goal 
that the Alzheimer's Council--a council of experts in Alzheimer's--
including experts from the Mayo Clinic in Senator Klobuchar's home 
State, have recommended that we spend $2 billion. Mr. President, $2 
billion is such a tiny percentage of the amount we are spending.
  So this is a worthy investment. It is one that will not only relieve 
suffering, save lives, potentially, but it will also more than pay for 
itself.
  I urge our colleagues to join us as cosponsors.
  I ask unanimous consent that letters from the Alzheimer's Association 
and the UsAgainstAlzheimer's group--both predominant national advocacy 
groups endorsing our resolution--be printed in the Record.
  There being no objection, the material was ordered to be printed in 
the Record, as follows:

                                      Alzheimer's Association,

                                                November 19, 2013.
     Senator Susan Collins,
     U.S. Senate, Dirksen Senate Office Building, Washington, DC.
     Senator Amy Klobuchar,
     U.S. Senate, Hart Senate Office Building, Washington, DC.
       Dear Senator Collins and Senator Klobuchar: On behalf of 
     the Alzheimer's Association and its nationwide network of 
     advocates, thank you for your continued leadership on issues 
     and legislation important to Americans with Alzheimer's and 
     their caregivers. The Alzheimer's Association proudly 
     endorses your most recent Alzheimer's resolution, which 
     supports the goals of the National Plan to Address 
     Alzheimer's Disease and increased funding for Alzheimer's 
     research at the National Institutes of Health.
       The Alzheimer's Association is the world's leading 
     voluntary health organization in Alzheimer's care, support 
     and research. Our mission is to eliminate Alzheimer's disease 
     and other dementias through the advancement of research; to 
     provide and enhance care and support for all affected; and to 
     reduce the risk of dementia through the promotion of brain 
     health. Our vision is a world without Alzheimer's.
       As two of our nation's strongest voices on behalf of 
     Americans living with Alzheimer's, you know that more than 5 
     million Americans are living with the disease, and without 
     significant action, as many as 16 million Americans will have 
     Alzheimer's by 2050. A recent study funded by the National 
     Institutes of Health and published in the New England Journal 
     of Medicine further confirmed that Alzheimer's disease is the 
     most expensive disease in America. Additionally, as the baby 
     boomer generation ages, one in eight will develop 
     Alzheimer's. This explosive growth will cause Alzheimer's 
     costs to Medicare and Medicaid to increase from $142 billion 
     today to more than $800 billion in 2050 (in today's dollars) 
     and threatens to bankrupt families, businesses and our health 
     care system. Unfortunately, our work is only growing more 
     urgent.
       The passage of the National Alzheimer's Project Act in 
     2010, and the subsequent release of the National Plan to 
     Address Alzheimer's Disease, marks a new era for Alzheimer's 
     disease and other dementias. Achieving the first goal of the 
     National Plan, to prevent and effectively treat Alzheimer's 
     disease by 2025, and supporting individuals with the disease 
     and their caregivers are critical to the success of this 
     legislation. The Alzheimer's Association strongly supports 
     efforts to increase funding for Alzheimer's research at the 
     National Institutes of Health, and we applaud you for your 
     efforts.
       The Alzheimer's Association deeply appreciates your 
     continued leadership on behalf of all Americans living with 
     Alzheimer's. If you have any questions about this or any 
     other legislation, please contact Rachel Conant, Director of 
     Federal Affairs, at [email protected] or at 202.638.7121.
           Sincerely,
                                                      Robert Egge,
     Vice President, Public Policy.
                                  ____



                                       US Against Alzheimer's,

                                Washington, DC, November 19, 2013.
     Hon. Susan Collins,
     U.S. Senate, Dirksen Senate Office Building, Washington, DC.
     Hon. Amy Klobuchar,
     U.S. Senate, Hart Senate Office Building, Washington, DC.
       Dear Sen. Collins & Sen. Klobuchar: On behalf of the more 
     than five million Americans currently struggling with 
     Alzheimer's disease and the millions of family caregivers 
     working each and every day to care for their loved ones, I am 
     writing to thank you for your powerful resolution declaring 
     our national goal of preventing and effectively treating 
     Alzheimer's disease by 2025 an urgent national priority. I 
     also applaud you for including in this resolution the call to 
     double the National Institutes of Health (NIH) research 
     commitment to Alzheimer's disease in Fiscal Year 2015 and to 
     meet by FY 2019 the $2 billion in annual Alzheimer's research 
     funding metric called for by the Advisory Council on 
     Alzheimer's Research, Care and Services. USAgainstAlzheimer's 
     is pleased to endorse your resolution and to commit to 
     working with you to build cosponsors.
       Three years ago, Congress took the bold action of enacting 
     the National Alzheimer's Project Act which led to the 
     development of the National Plan to Address Alzheimer's 
     Disease and the 2025 goal. Much has occurred in the ensuing 
     period, including the reallocation of some NIH research 
     dollars to focus on Alzheimer's disease. But despite these 
     efforts, our annual Alzheimer's research budget remains at 
     about $500 million--one quarter of the $2 billion in annual 
     funding leading Alzheimer's researchers and the advisory 
     council have deemed the minimum necessary to enhance our 
     chances of achieving the 2025 goal.
       As your resolution so ably notes, the United States does 
     not have a choice as to whether or not we will pay for 
     Alzheimer's disease. We are paying today, dearly, in the more 
     than $140 billion in annual costs of care borne by the 
     taxpayers through Medicare and Medicaid, an amount that will 
     escalate sharply over the years if the current trajectory of 
     the disease is left unchanged. The amount we invest annually 
     in Alzheimer's research today is but a fraction of 1 percent 
     of this total care burden, an amount that is simply 
     insufficient given the enormity of the task at hand. While a 
     bold and visionary plan and 2025 goal are important political 
     statements, absent commensurate resources and the necessary 
     focused national leadership, the plan and goal will be worth 
     precious little.
       By urging that our 2025 goal be viewed as a national 
     priority and setting the $2 billion goal over the next five 
     years, you have provided our nation--and your fellow 
     appropriators--with a clear goal at which to aim. I applaud 
     you for recognizing the plight of our current patients as 
     well as caregivers the need to similarly bolster patient and 
     caregiver support initiatives. We look forward to working 
     with you to engage the Senate Appropriations Committee to 
     ensure that your call for a doubling of Alzheimer's research 
     funding at the NIH in FY 2015 is reflected in key spending 
     bills.
       I thank you, again, for your leadership and for all you do 
     to stop Alzheimer's disease.
       Sincerely,
                                                George Vradenburg,
                                                         Chairman.

  Ms. COLLINS. Mr. President, I am very pleased that my colleague 
Senator Klobuchar, who has been such a leader in this area, has joined 
me on the Senate floor and I yield the floor to her.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Minnesota.
  Ms. KLOBUCHAR. Mr. President, I thank my colleague Senator Collins 
for her great leadership for so long on this issue. We have together 
authored this resolution, and she has been a true champion for those 
suffering from this debilitating disease.
  Our resolution builds on the legacy of work and research that has 
been done in America. It declares the prevention and effective 
treatment of Alzheimer's by 2025 an urgent national priority and calls 
for enhanced resources necessary to achieve this goal.
  There is no better time than now to discuss this critical issue and 
draw attention to this disease because, as my colleague from Maine 
noted, November is Alzheimer's Disease Awareness and Family Caregivers 
Month. President Reagan made this designation back in 1983 to raise 
awareness about the devastating impacts of Alzheimer's disease on 
patients and their caregivers.
  Alzheimer's presents one of the toughest medical, economic, and 
social challenges of this country. We all know we are seeing a doubling 
of the senior population in this country--some call it a silver 
tsunami, and, of course, it is a positive. More and more people are 
living long and longer. But we also know we are seeing more and more 
people who are living with very difficult diseases, and one of them, in 
fact the leading one, is Alzheimer's.
  This disease takes an incredibly enormous toll, both on patients as 
well as those who must sit helplessly by and watch as the disease 
progresses and slowly takes away a loved one.
  Right now close to 5.2 million Americans are living with this 
disease, including nearly 100,000 people in my home State of Minnesota.
  These numbers will grow dramatically. If we continue on the same 
trajectory we are on now, by 2050 an estimated 16 million Americans 
will be living with this disease. That is an increase of almost 320 
percent over what we see today--320 percent over what we see today.
  The financial cost of providing care for people afflicted by the 
disease is staggering for families, for our health care system, and of 
course for the Federal budget.
  In 2013 we will spend $203 billion caring for individuals with 
Alzheimer's. Medicare and Medicaid will bear about 70 percent of these 
costs. By 2050 we will be paying more than $1.2 trillion to care for 
people with Alzheimer's.

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  We also know it is tough on caregivers. They suffer an emotional and 
physical toll that results in a higher incidence of chronic conditions 
for themselves.
  In 2012 more than 15 million family members, spouses, children, and 
friends in the United States provided care to an adult with 
Alzheimer's. The unpaid care is valued at more than $216 billion.
  So many of the people, friends of mine, who are involved in this care 
also have their own children. That is why we call them the sandwiched 
generation. They are literally sandwiched in between caring for their 
aging parents and caring for a child.
  Just as the country addressed the needs of working moms and dads in 
the 1970s, we must now address the needs of working sons and daughters. 
This is a critical piece of the puzzle in taking on the Alzheimer's 
challenge.
  Most important, our resolution is about the lives that could be 
improved with better treatments and cures. Earlier this year I met with 
30 Minnesotans who were here in Washington, DC, each having been 
touched by Alzheimer's. I have been at rallies. I have seen those 
purple shirts in our State. Thousands and thousands of people gathered 
to say: We want a cure. We want better treatments. We do not want to 
lose our loved ones like this.
  One way we can help stem the tide of this devastating disease is 
through research. As my colleague from Maine mentioned, the Mayo Clinic 
does fine research in this area. They have found ways to identify 
Alzheimer's earlier through testing. At first you might say: How does 
that help to get a cure? How are we ever going to know what treatments 
work best and what a cure is if we cannot first identify it at early 
stages so we can then see improvements? Because if we identify it too 
late, you are never able to test to see if treatments work. The 
University of Minnesota is also doing outstanding research on mice--
prize-winning research.
  Here is the fact of any of these numbers. We all remember this is not 
just about the numbers; it is about the people. But if there is any 
number to remember, it is this: If we were able to delay the onset of 
Alzheimer's by just 5 years--5 years--we would be able to cut the 
government spending on Alzheimer's care by almost half in 2050--almost 
half.
  I see Mr. Durbin, also a leader in this area, the Senator from 
Illinois, out on the floor. He knows what we are talking about with the 
budget, the kind of money we are going to need to help our kids to make 
our country a better place. Just think of what we could do with that 
money if we could reduce the spending on this debilitating disease by 
half by 2050.
  The answers on Alzheimer's will not just drop from the sky. It will 
take dedicated scientists, advanced research initiatives, and skilled 
doctors to conduct the trials and care for as many patients as possible 
until we finally put an end to the disease.
  That is what this is about. A friend of mine is in town today, 
commissioner Mike Opat from Hennepin County. Hennepin County has the 
biggest public hospital in Minnesota, and as county attorney I used to 
represent that hospital. I know what this means for their budget every 
single day, as people who could have been cured or people who could 
have had the onset of the disease be delayed have suffered and have 
been in the hospital and have been on the taxpayer dime. Of course we 
are going to take care of them, but there are so many other things this 
money could be used for.
  The Advisory Council on Alzheimer's Research, Care, and Services--
which is led by Dr. Ronald Petersen, a Minnesotan and a leading 
researcher on Alzheimer's--has acknowledged that in order to reach the 
goal of effectively treating Alzheimer's disease by 2025, our country 
must invest $2 billion per year. It sounds like a lot of money but not 
with these other figures I just put out there; that $1.2 trillion in 
treatment, the doubling of the number of seniors whom we are seeing by 
2030--$2 billion per year.
  That is why Senator Collins and I have joined together to submit this 
resolution which resolves that the Senate will strive to double the 
funding the United States spends on Alzheimer's research in 2015 and 
develop a plan to meet the target of $2 billion a year over the next 5 
years.
  Today we spend approximately $500 million per year on Alzheimer's, as 
noted by my colleague. So we have a long way to go to meet this goal. 
It is not easy. But in the long term, it will save us money, it will 
save lives, and it will make for a better world for literally millions 
of people in this country and around the world.
  I urge my colleagues to join Senator Collins and me in supporting 
this important resolution.

                          ____________________