As Congress addresses the needs of our nation’s most vulnerable impacted by COVID-19, they’re also continuing their work to address another devastating disease affecting millions of Americans — Alzheimer’s.
This cause is important to me because both my parents have been diagnosed with dementia. All my life, I watched these strong independent people work hard to make the best life they could for my brother and me. Although they were not highly educated, they worked hard and sacrificed so much so that their children could have access to a better education than they had. It is heart-breaking for me to watch them now as they lose their independence and struggle to do very basic things like bathing, dressing and feeding themselves.
Since my parents’ diagnoses, I have met so many people with stories just like mine, who have had to face the emotional, physical and financial tolls this disease takes on individuals, families and primary caregivers.
The need for adequate funding toward Alzheimer’s and dementia research is very important for all those who love and care for people living with Alzheimer’s disease — it gives us hope as family members and gives caregivers hope that we may be spared the same fate as those we love.
Please join me in thanking Representative Sanford Bishop for his support of increasing funding for Alzheimer’s and dementia research at the National Institutes of Health by $354 million.
