A bipartisan bill that has been introduced would better prepare primary care providers to diagnose disease and care for people living with dementia, according to the Alzheimer’s Association.
HR 7688, the Accelerating Access to Dementia & Alzheimer’s Provider Training Act, would reauthorize the Alzheimer’s and Dementia Care Extension of Community Healthcare Outcomes Program to provide free video education and training about Alzheimer’s and dementia to primary care providers.
The Alzheimer’s Association and its Alzheimer’s Impact Movement subsidiary announced their support of the bill, which they said would help healthcare providers better diagnose Alzheimer’s and other dementias and deliver person-centered care.
“As we enter a new era of Alzheimer’s treatment, access to a timely and accurate diagnosis is more critical than ever,” AIM president and Alzheimer’s Association Chief Public Policy Officer Robert Egge said in a statement. “The bipartisan AADAPT Act will increase access to early diagnosis and quality dementia care in communities across the nation while reducing geographic barriers and the cost of care.”
According to the Alzheimer’s Association, only half of those living with Alzheimer’s disease have diagnosed disease, and of those only half are told of their diagnoses. Although primary care providers make the initial diagnosis in 85% of cases, they report feeling unprepared to provide care because they cannot access dementia training, the association said.
The bill, introduced March 15 and referred to the House Committee on Energy and Commerce, would build on the current ECHO program to provide grants specifically to address knowledge gaps and workforce capacity issues primary care providers face related to Alzheimer’s and dementia. The dementia care training program from the Alzheimer’s Association is one of the first in the country focused on improving access to dementia care, according to the association.
A fiscal year 2024 appropriations package signed Saturday by President Biden will increase funding by $100 million for research into Alzheimer’s and other dementias at the National Institutes of Health, and it will allocate $34 million to fund and continue to implement the BOLD Infrastructure for Alzheimer’s Act.
Addressing long-term care access
In related news, the Alzheimer’s Association and AIM also sent a letter last week to Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions leaders in support of the reauthorization of the Older Americans Act.
The organizations said that an estimated 6.9 million Americans aged 65 or more years are living with Alzheimer’s today, with the cost of care projected to reach $360 billion this year. In addition, total payments for healthcare, long-term care and hospice care for people living with dementia are projected to increase to almost $1 trillion in 2050.
The groups asked the committee to consider policies to reduce barriers and ensure individuals living with dementia receive adequate access to long-term care and home- and community-based services. Forty-two percent of assisted living residents in the United States have diagnosed dementia, according to the National Center for Assisted Living, citing federal data.
“A strong dementia care workforce is needed to ensure quality care for aging populations,” the associations wrote.
