USA2 Spotlight 

Don't Miss Next Week's Alzheimer's Talks: Join us on November 18 at 2 p.m. EST for Alzheimer's Talks with Dr. Larry Goldstein, Director of the Sanford Stem Cell Center and Distinguished Professor in the Department of Cellular and Molecular Medicine at the University of California, San Diego. Dr. Goldstein will join us to discuss the stem cell-based models of disease and their work in using stem cells to fight against Alzheimer's disease. Sign up here.

How would you spend $1 billion to stop Alzheimer’s?! On November 18th from 4:00-5:00pm Eastern, George Vradenburg and ResearchersAgainstAlzheimer’s will host an expert Webinar, exploring what is needed to find a cure for this cruel disease. The presentation will include recommendations from key opinion leaders in the field on how to fix a broken and siloed system. Join us as we discuss and debate insights on the changes needed across the drug development spectrum — from basic science to the clinic and the market. Please RSVP by November 16th to Sarah Kwon at [email protected]. Call-in information will be provided upon RSVP.

Must Reads

A November 15, 2015 Sacramento Bee article reported on the rapid growth of California's older adult population. According to the article, “A huge growth in the over-65 population, from about 4.5 million today to more than 11 million by 2050 – nearly a quarter of the state’s residents then – will disrupt labor markets as it imposes major new costs on taxpayers for health care and other services…With Medicare, the elderly have almost universal medical insurance coverage, but the program generally doesn’t pay for extended nursing home care. Therefore, its hefty costs often wind up in the state’s program for the poor, Medi-Cal – and that’s true even for middle-class patients after they have spent down their assets to qualify. The Alzheimer’s Association, for example, estimates that Medi-Cal will see a nearly $5 billion a year cost just for that disease’s rising numbers of victims, not counting those who are infirm for other reasons.”

A November 13, 2015 NexAvenue opinion piece by Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine) underscored the importance of protecting the well-being of older Americans by investing in Alzheimer’s research. According to Sen. Collins, “In my work as chairman of the Congressional Alzheimer’s Caucus, I have learned much about our nation’s most costly disease and the devastating effect it has on more than five million Americans and their families. Although promising research is underway, there currently are no means of prevention, effective treatments or a cure for Alzheimer’s disease. The good news is that the Senate Appropriations Committee, on which I serve, recently approved a 60 percent increase in Alzheimer’s research funding. I am delighted that the Senate is finally recognizing the need for a greater investment in Alzheimer’s research and will work for this funding to be retained in the final version of the appropriations for the National Institutes of Health.”

A November 13, 2015 U.S. News & World Report article reported on the cost of taking care of aging parents. According to the article, “Of those polled, 38 percent said that they hadn't planned for the financial costs of caring for an aging family member or friend, and 35 percent of experienced caregivers estimated that they spend 26 percent of their monthly budget on caregiving costs. In other words, it's expensive to take care of an aging parent, relative or friend…Long-term health care. Yes, you may spend a lot of money on your parents' medicine, but it's often that round-the-clock care that kills the budget, although often, it will be your parents' income (and possibly your inheritance) that takes the brunt of it. Bruce McCreary, a real estate agent in Arvada, Colorado, says he had to put his parents in a care facility when his mother developed Alzheimer's – and his father, meanwhile, was declining while trying to care for her.”