Fathers worrying about their daughters is nothing new. I’m one of the lucky ones because my daughter graduated college, has a successful job and lives in New Orleans where my wife and I get to see her every day. But my concern for her goes deeper than proximity or financial independence. I don’t want her to end up like my mother.
Don’t get me wrong. My mother, Clare, was an incredible woman, as was her mother Anna Bella. Both were born and raised here in the Big Easy where they taught me the importance of hard work, the blessings that come from treating people with kindness and how to make a mean gumbo.
They both also lived with and passed away with Alzheimer’s disease. As did my aunt.
The number of Americans living with Alzheimer’s is growing fast. One in three older Americans dies with dementia, according to the Alzheimer’s Association. And given that almost two-thirds of Americans living with the disease are women, I guess I shouldn’t be surprised. But I want better for my daughter.
Jim Pittman
This is not some far-flung wish. So much progress in finding ways to diagnose and treat Alzheimer’s has already happened in her lifetime. A dozen years ago, groundbreaking legislation called the National Alzheimer’s Project Act (NAPA) led to the first national plan to address the Alzheimer's crisis and to coordinate responses across research, care and support. Thanks to bipartisan congressional action, National Institutes of Health spending on Alzheimer’s and dementia research advanced more than sevenfold in that same time, reaching a historic $3.8 billion annually.
The results speak for themselves. Within the last several years alone, three treatments have been approved by the Food and Drug Administration for the first time. These treatments address the underlying biology of Alzheimer's and change the course of the disease in a meaningful way for people in the early stages.
If we want to ensure continued progress for the next generation, we need to renew the policies that have gotten us there. Right now, three bipartisan pieces of legislation that would do that are waiting for a House vote, including the NAPA Reauthorization Act.
The BOLD Infrastructure for Alzheimer’s Reauthorization Act empowers public health departments in Louisiana and other communities across the nation by ensuring they have the resources to implement effective dementia interventions such as increasing early detection and diagnosis, risk reduction and caregiver support.
The Alzheimer's Accountability and Investment Act would ensure that Congress hears directly from scientists at the NIH about the amount of resources needed to address the Alzheimer’s public health crisis.
Momentum is on our side. Too many of us in Louisiana are impacted by this disease to allow smart and meaningful policies to lapse.
Becoming the primary caregiver to my mother as she progressed through the stages of Alzheimer’s was a labor of love. I was grateful to have the time with her, but no one could have prepared me or the more than 11 million Americans serving right now as caregivers for the emotional, physical and financial toll we face.
On behalf of the nearly 95,000 Louisianans living with this disease, their hundreds of thousands of caregivers and especially the children of our next generation like my daughter, I am grateful that one Louisianan is House speaker and another is the House majority leader and can help bring these important pieces of legislation to the floor for a vote.
With Congress back in session this week, I hope we can count on Rep. Mike Johnson and Rep. Steve Scalise and all members of Congress to swiftly reauthorize these bills to build on the progress made over the last decade, renewing our nation’s commitment to fighting Alzheimer’s and other dementia.