INDIANAPOLIS, February 11, 2019 – About 100 advocates from across the state will gather at the Statehouse in downtown Indianapolis Wednesday, February 13 from 10 a.m. – 2 p.m. for State Advocacy Day, hosted by the Alzheimer’s Association Greater Indiana Chapter. Attendees will include people living with Alzheimer’s disease, caregivers, and people who have lost loved ones to the disease. They will have the opportunity to meet directly with their state lawmakers to tell their personal stories and push for H.B. 1351 – the Greater Indiana Chapter’s first-ever state bill.
If enacted, H.B. 1351 will create an Alzheimer’s and Dementia State Council charged with developing a State Alzheimer’s Disease Plan. Topics of the plan will include raising awareness of the disease, ensuring a dementia-capable workforce, assessing access to home-and-community-based settings, improving dementia care in institutional settings, and reducing health disparities.
About 110,000 Hoosiers are currently living with Alzheimer’s disease, and another 338,000 are serving as unpaid caregivers.
“It is hard to understate the impact Alzheimer’s disease has on Hoosiers,” said Jason Barrett, director of public policy for the Alzheimer’s Association Greater Indiana Chapter. “Addressing this disease now will not only help improve care and support, it could help reduce the nearly $1 billion in state Medicaid expenses caused by this disease each year.”
Speakers include Dr. Daniel Bateman, MD, a clinical research scientist at the Regenstrief Institute’s Indiana University Center for Aging Research and a Co-Investigator for the federally funded Indiana Alzheimer Disease Center.
“Dr. Bateman is one of the nation’s leading experts on this disease and its impact on public health, so we are honored to have him participate in our event,” continued Barrett. “Our hope is that his expertise, combined with the personal stories of our advocates, will move lawmakers to take action on this public health crisis.”
The full text of H.B. 1351 is available here.
About Alzheimer’s Association®
The Alzheimer’s Association is the leading voluntary health organization in Alzheimer’s care, support and research. Our mission is to eliminate Alzheimer’s disease through the advancement of research; to provide and enhance care and support for all affected; and to reduce the risk of dementia through the promotion of brain health. Our vision is a world without Alzheimer’s®. Visit www.alz.org or call 800.272.3900.
