Alzheimer's Disease Programs Fared Well in Final BudgetAlzheimer's Association Alzheimer's disease programs and research fared well in the federal budget process according to the Alzheimer's Association after a review of the budget passed by Congress last Friday night. "We believe the budget is a bipartisan recognition of the significant impact Alzheimer's disease plays on families," said Bonnie Hogue, Alzheimer's Association Director of Federal and State Policy Issues. "This legislation will provide important building blocks for the new administration in its ability to tackle the growing threat the disease will cause our nation's health care system."  Key Legislative Victories "Homebound" Definition will Allow for Day Care A provision to clarify the Medicare "homebound" definition to allow beneficiaries to attend adult day care was included in the final budget bill. This provision change was one of the Alzheimer's Association's top legislative priorities. Research has found that adult day care is a successful therapeutic treatment for persons with Alzheimer's disease and other dementias. In the past, Medicare rules dictated that in order for a beneficiary to be eligible for home health benefits, they must require skilled nursing care and be declared "homebound" (i.e., the beneficiary can only leave the home infrequently and with great assistance from another individual). Under the old rules, a beneficiary with Alzheimer's disease who left home to attend adult day care failed to meet the "homebound" test and was denied the home health benefits to which they are otherwise entitled. Alzheimer Research/ AoA Alzheimer Demonstration Grants Increased The Labor/HHS Appropriations bill included a 14 percent increase in funding for Alzheimer research. This will bring federal spending on Alzheimer's research to over $500 million in FY 2001. In addition, the bill contained $9 million for the Alzheimer demonstration grants at the Administration on Aging (AoA). This is a 50 percent increase over previous years' funding and will allow expansion of this program to additional states. The Alzheimer demonstration grants are provided to states to develop innovative services targeting people with Alzheimer's. Family Caregiver Support Programs Come on Line The Caregiver Support Program, newly established by the reauthorization of the Older Americans Act, received full funding at $125 million. This new program will provide money for a number of community-based programs including respite care, adult day care, counseling services and caregiver training. Safe Return Funded The budget contained $900,000 in funding for the Alzheimer's Association Safe Return Program. Safe Return is a nationwide identification program that assists in the safe return of individuals with Alzheimer's or related dementias who wander and become lost. The Alzheimer's Association is the premier source of information and support for the 4 million Americans with Alzheimer's disease. Through its national network of chapters, it offers a broad range of programs and services for people with the disease, their families, and caregivers and represents their interests on Alzheimer-related issues before federal, state, and local government and with health and long-term care providers. The largest private funder of Alzheimer research, the Association has committed more than $100 million toward research into the causes, treatment, prevention, and cure of Alzheimer's."
For more information, or to contact Alzheimer's Association, see their website at: www.alz.org |
 |
Email Article To A Friend |  |
Link to us! |
