[Congressional Record Volume 163, Number 187 (Wednesday, November 15, 2017)]
[House]
[Page H9268]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




    NATIONAL ALZHEIMER'S DISEASE AWARENESS MONTH AND FINDING A CURE

  (Mr. YODER asked and was given permission to address the House for 1 
minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. YODER. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize the month of 
November as National Alzheimer's Disease Awareness Month and to 
highlight the need for continued funding to find a cure.
  In 1983, when President Reagan designated this month to help raise 
awareness for Alzheimer's, there were less than 2 million Americans who 
suffered from this disease. Today, there are nearly 5.4 million 
Americans with Alzheimer's.
  Finding a cure to this disease is a smart health policy decision we 
can make, and it might also be the most critical economic proposal. The 
cost of caring for Alzheimer's patients in the U.S. was estimated to be 
$236 billion in 2016, which is more than $200 billion greater than the 
total funding for research provided by the NIH for all diseases.
  Investments in research have led to some great news in Kansas. The 
University of Kansas announced that it will participate in the trial of 
a new drug intended to prevent or delay Alzheimer's. Further, KU 
researchers are continuing to work on other preventative studies.
  Mr. Speaker, as we must continue to provide resources that we need to 
find a cure for this disease, I am proud of the work being done at KU 
and across the Nation. We will continue to be relentless in our fight 
to cure Alzheimer's.

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