Washington, D.C. – In a letter to the U.S. Senate Committee on Appropriations and the Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education, U.S. Senators Susan Collins (R-ME), Mark Warner (D-VA), and Ed Markey (D-MA) requested an increase in funding for Alzheimer’s disease research as they work to set appropriations levels for fiscal year 2019.  Senator Collins is the founder of the Congressional Task Force on Alzheimer's disease and co-chairs the group with Senators Warner, Markey, and Pat Toomey (R-PA).    

“Alzheimer's disease and other dementias pose a grave threat to the health of our people and to the fiscal well-being of our nation,” Senators Collins, Warner, and Markey wrote.  “Nearly 6 million Americans are living with Alzheimer's today, a number that is projected to increase to approximately 14 million by 2050.  Alzheimer's and other dementias cost our nation an estimated $277 billion a year, including $186 billion in costs to Medicare and Medicaid.” 

“While the challenges posed by Alzheimer's are substantial, continued breakthroughs in science and therapy could help achieve the national goal of preventing and effectively treating Alzheimer's disease by 2025… [W]e urge you to continue making Alzheimer's disease research at the NIH a priority so that we can ramp up to the level necessary to achieve the 2025 goal set by the National Plan,” the Senators continued.  “We…also urge you to provide appropriate support to Alzheimer's disease and dementia initiatives through the Administration for Community Living (ACL) and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) that seek to support family caregivers of persons with Alzheimer's disease and other dementias and to expand awareness and understanding of this disease.” 

In 2011, Senator Collins authored the National Alzheimer’s Project Act (NAPA), with then-Senator Evan Bayh (D-IN).  NAPA convened a panel of experts, who determined that $2 billion per year in research funding is needed to achieve our goal of preventing and treating Alzheimer’s by the year 2025.  Senator Collins helped to secure $1.8 billion—an increase of $414 million—for Alzheimer’s research in the fiscal year 2018 funding bill, which brings us within reach of the $2 billion goal.

Senators Collins, Warner, and Markey’s letter was signed by a total of 38 Senators: Jim Inhofe (R-OK), Tammy Baldwin (D-WI), Mike Crapo (R-ID), Chris Murphy (D-CT), Roger Wicker (R-MS), Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH), John Kennedy (R-LA), Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY), James Risch (R-ID), Dianne Feinstein (D-CA), Todd Young (R-IN), Tom Carper (D-DE), John Hoeven (R-ND), Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI), Martin Heinrich (D-NM), Sherrod Brown (D-OH), Michael Bennet (D-CO), Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), Mazie Hirono (D-HI), Chris Van Hollen (D-MD),  Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), Cory Booker (D-NJ), Bill Nelson (D-FL), Debbie Stabenow (D-MI), Chris Coons (D-DE), Tammy Duckworth (D-IL), Bob Menendez (D-NJ), Jack Reed (D-RI), Gary Peters (D-MI), Amy Klobuchar (D-MN), Catherine Cortez Masto (D-NV), Angus King (I-ME), Bob Casey (D-PA), Ben Cardin (D-MD), and Tim Kaine (D-VA).

To view a signed PDF of the letter, click HERE.

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