Bond sponsors Alzheimer's bill

In early February, in recognition of President Ronald Reagan’s Feb. 6 birthday, U.S. Sen. Kit Bond, R-Mo., launched a five-city tour across Missouri to reintroduce his Alzheimer’s legislation in Springfield, Kansas City, St. Joseph, St. Louis and Cape Girardeau.
In honor of Reagan, the nation’s 40th president, Bond and Sen. Barbara Mikulski, D-Md., are reintroducing the Ronald Reagan Alzheimer’s Breakthrough Act, which would increase funding for Alzheimer’s research and increase support for Alzheimer’s patients and their caregivers.
“Ronald Reagan had a profound impact on our nation throughout his public life,” said Bond in a news release. “The former president and his wife, Nancy, changed the face of Alzheimer’s. Their story of courage and commitment has increased public awareness of the disease and the need for research into its causes and prevention.”
If passed, the Bond-Mikulski bill would make several changes, including: doubling funding for Alzheimer’s Research at the National Institutes of Health; increasing funding for the National Caregiver Support Program from $153 million to $250 million; authorizing $1 million for the Safe Return program to assist in the identification and safe, timely return of individuals who suffer from Alzheimer’s or related dementias and who wander away from their caregivers; and establishing a $3,000 tax credit for caregivers to help with the high costs of caring for loved ones at home.
The bill also would establish a public education campaign to spread about Alzheimer’s prevention techniques, based on National Institutes of Health research.
Statistics from the Alzheimer’s Association indicate that the average lifetime cost of care for an individual with Alzheimer’s is $170,000, and an estimated 4.5 million Americans have Alzheimer’s disease. By 2050, the association maintains that the number of people with Alzheimer’s could range from 11.3 million to 16 million.