[Congressional Record Volume 170, Number 148 (Monday, September 23, 2024)]
[House]
[Pages H5577-H5578]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




             ALZHEIMER'S ACCOUNTABILITY AND INVESTMENT ACT

  Mr. BUCSHON. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the 
bill (S. 134) to require an annual budget estimate for the initiatives 
of the National Institutes of Health pursuant to reports and 
recommendations made under the National Alzheimer's Project Act.
  The Clerk read the title of the bill.
  The text of the bill is as follows:


[[Page H5578]]


  


                                 S. 134

       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 ``Alzheimer's Accountability 
     and Investment Act''.

     SEC. 2. EXTENSION OF PROJECT.

       Section 2 of the National Alzheimer's Project Act (42 
     U.S.C. 11225) is amended--
       (1) by redesignating subsection (h) as subsection (i); and
       (2) by inserting after subsection (g) the following:
       ``(h) Professional Judgment Budget.--For fiscal year 2024 
     and each subsequent fiscal year, the Director of the National 
     Institutes of Health shall prepare and submit, directly to 
     the President for review and transmittal to Congress, after 
     reasonable opportunity for comment, but without change, by 
     the Secretary of Health and Human Services and the Advisory 
     Council, an annual budget estimate for the initiatives of the 
     National Institutes of Health pursuant to the reports and 
     recommendations made under this Act, including an estimate of 
     the number and type of personnel needs for the National 
     Institutes of Health.''.

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from 
Indiana (Mr. Bucshon) and the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Pallone) 
each will control 20 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Indiana.


                             General Leave

  Mr. BUCSHON. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members 
may have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks 
and include extraneous material in the Record on the bill.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentleman from Indiana?
  There was no objection.
  Mr. BUCSHON. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of S. 134, the Alzheimer's 
Accountability and Investment Act led by Senators Collins and Markey. 
The House companion bill, H.R. 620, is led by Representatives Smith of 
New Jersey and Tonko.
  In the United States, health and long-term costs for individuals 
living with Alzheimer's disease and other dementias are projected to 
reach $360 billion in 2024. Around 64 percent of these costs are 
expected to be covered by Medicare and Medicaid with patients on the 
hook for the other $90 billion in out-of-pocket spending.
  This tremendous cost does not even include the value of our unpaid 
caregivers, which was estimated to be $350 billion in 2023, amounting 
to over 18 billion hours of care.
  In addition, individuals with dementias are more likely to have other 
chronic conditions, such as heart disease, diabetes, and kidney 
disease.
  This bill would require the NIH to submit an annual budget estimate 
to Congress so that we may effectively assess the current resources 
needed to achieve the goals of the National Alzheimer's Project.
  Continued investments in research to prevent and treat Alzheimer's 
disease and dementia will improve the quality of life for millions of 
Americans, with the simultaneous hope of achieving significant long-
term financial savings.
  I encourage my colleagues to support this bill, and I reserve the 
balance of my time.
  Mr. PALLONE. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  Mr. Speaker, I rise to speak in support of S. 134, the Alzheimer's 
Accountability and Investment Act.
  This bill would require the National Institutes of Health to annually 
submit an estimate of its budget and personnel needs for carrying out 
initiatives related to the National Alzheimer's Project.
  The Energy and Commerce Committee reported out this bipartisan bill 
sponsored by Representatives Chris Smith and Paul Tonko this spring.
  According to the Alzheimer's Association 2024 report, the annual cost 
of caring for people with Alzheimer's or other types of dementia will 
be about $360 billion this year alone. That is $15 billion higher than 
in 2023.
  The report also found that 6.9 million Americans aged 65 and older 
have Alzheimer's dementia, with nearly 185,000 residing in my State of 
New Jersey. Nationwide, between 2000 and 2021, the number of deaths 
from Alzheimer's disease more than doubled, increasing 141 percent.
  In order to make sure we meet the goals set out by the National 
Alzheimer's Project, which the House is also considering today, we must 
make sure that NIH has our support. S. 134 will require that the NIH 
submit a professional judgment budget for the National Alzheimer's 
Project so that we can identify the needs of the agency.
  With this information, we can be assured that the Nation's experts 
are speaking directly to Congress on resources they need to effectively 
treat the disease and effectively communicate the capacity needs of 
NIH.
  I encourage my colleagues to vote ``yes'' on S. 134 so that we can 
continue our commitment to combat Alzheimer's disease.
  Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. BUCSHON. Mr. Speaker, I have no further speakers, I am prepared 
to close, and I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. PALLONE. Mr. Speaker, again, whatever we can do to help prevent 
or deal with more effectively with the Alzheimer's disorder cases, we 
should support it.
  For that reason, I ask all my colleagues to support this bill on a 
bipartisan basis. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
  Mr. BUCSHON. Mr. Speaker, in closing, I encourage a ``yes'' vote on 
this bill, and I yield back the balance of my time.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the 
gentleman from Indiana (Mr. Bucshon) that the House suspend the rules 
and pass the bill, S. 134.
  The question was taken; and (two-thirds being in the affirmative) the 
rules were suspended and the bill was passed.
  A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.

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