[Congressional Record Volume 169, Number 102 (Monday, June 12, 2023)]
[Senate]
[Pages S2047-S2048]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                 ALZHEIMER'S AND BRAIN AWARENESS MONTH

  Mr. CRAPO. Mr. President, with my fellow Members of Idaho's 
congressional delegation Senator Jim Risch and Representatives  Mike 
Simpson and Russ Fulcher, we recognize June as Alzheimer's and Brain 
Awareness Month. According to the Alzheimer's Association, 27,000 
people aged 65 and older are living with Alzheimer's in Idaho, while 
65,000 family caregivers bear the burden of the disease. In honor of 
these Idaho families and the millions of other Americans and their 
loved ones impacted by Alzheimer's, we continue the fight to stop 
harmful policies delaying access to treatment for Alzheimer's patients.
  The Food and Drug Administration's, FDA, accelerated approval pathway 
has provided a lifeline for countless Americans suffering from 
Alzheimer's disease by advancing access to safe and effective medicines 
years before these treatments could otherwise come to market. Numerous 
studies show that drugs that have gone through the accelerated approval 
pathway reach patients an average of more than 3 years before they 
would otherwise.
  Unfortunately, the current administration has taken unprecedented 
steps to erode this pathway, deterring lifesaving innovation and 
delaying access to care by restricting Medicare coverage for an entire 
class of potential Alzheimer's therapies. This harmful coverage 
decision carries grave implications for Alzheimer's patients. Every day 
without access to FDA-approved drugs, more than 2,000 people transition 
to a more advanced stage of Alzheimer's where they are no longer 
eligible for treatment, reports the Alzheimer's Association. The 
administration must reverse course and provide access to these 
lifesaving pathways as quickly as possible.

[[Page S2048]]

  We are grateful to leaders from communities across Idaho and our 
country who are pivotal in advancing Alzheimer's and dementia research 
and other important efforts that are making progress in fighting this 
disease and supporting families dealing with this dreaded disease. The 
advocates' personal experiences with the disease's effects in their own 
families often fuel and inform their engagement. Their perspectives are 
deeply valuable as we continue to work to improve drug access and 
affordability. This includes working to ensure Federal policies enable, 
not discourage, innovators to quickly bring their life-saving 
discoveries to market.
  Time and again, American ingenuity has proven it can meet the 
challenges we face, if the Federal Government gets out of the way. This 
Alzheimer's and Brain Awareness Month is a reminder of the pressing 
need to better empower patients and doctors to decide the treatments 
right for them. Throughout this month, as Americans wear purple and 
participate in other awareness and educational activities and in the 
years ahead, let's do all we can to alleviate the burden on families 
across our country by easing access to innovative treatment for 
Alzheimer's.

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