Senators Collins’ Bipartisan Bill to Expand Alzheimer’s Care and Prevention Efforts Signed into Law

Of the more than 1,800 health care bills that have been introduced in the 118th Congress, to date, only ten have reached the President's desk to be signed into law. Senator Collins has successfully led or co-led four of those ten bills to passage.

Washington, D.C. - Today, the President signed into law the Building Our Largest Dementia (BOLD) Infrastructure for Alzheimer's Reauthorization Act of 2024, bipartisan legislation introduced by U.S. Senators Susan Collins, Catherine Cortez Masto (D-NV), Tim Kaine (D-VA), and Shelley Moore Capito (R-WV). The bill will reauthorize funding for public health initiatives across the country to combat Alzheimer's disease and preserve brain health. These initiatives began when the original BOLD Act, authored by this same bipartisan group of four senators, was signed into law in 2018.

During the 118^th Congress, more than 1,800 health care bills have been introduced in either the U.S. Senate or House of Representatives. Of these bills, Senator Collins has led or co-led four of the ten that have reached the President's desk to be signed into law.

This bipartisan legislation will build on the work of two bills authored by Senator Collins that were recently signed into law, the National Alzheimer's Project Act and the Alzheimer's Accountability and Investment Act. The BOLD Infrastructure for Alzheimer's Reauthorization Act will help to translate research findings made possible by those bills into practical interventions, helping communities implement strategies that promote brain health and improve care for those affected by Alzheimer's disease.

"Alzheimer's disease is one of the greatest and most under-recognized public health threats of our time. Nearly seven million Americans-including 29,600 Mainers-are living with the disease, and that number is soaring as our overall population grows older and lives longer," said Senator Collins, a founder and Senate co-chair of the Congressional Task Force on Alzheimer's Disease. "The passage of this bipartisan legislation is a tremendous victory for families and communities nationwide. By reauthorizing the BOLD Infrastructure for Alzheimer's Act, we are reaffirming our commitments to providing the tools needed to fight this devastating disease, and to not let Alzheimer's be one of the defining diseases of our children's generation as it has ours."

The BOLD Infrastructure for Alzheimer's Reauthorization Act will authorize $33 million per year over the next five years to support:

• Alzheimer's Disease and Related Dementias Public Health Centers of Excellence dedicated to promoting effective Alzheimer's disease and caregiving interventions, as well as educating the public on Alzheimer's disease, cognitive decline, and brain health. The three current Centers have established themselves as national resources and are supporting nationwide implementation of the actions outlined in the CDC's Healthy Brain Initiative's Road Map. Each center is focused on a key issue related to dementia - from risk reduction to early detection to caregiving.

• Public Health Cooperative Agreements with the CDC that are awarded to State Health Departments to help them meet local needs in promoting brain health, reducing risk of cognitive decline, improving care for those with Alzheimer's, and other key public health activities. More than 40 Public Health Departments, including Maine, across the United States are now promoting a strong public health approach to Alzheimer's disease and related dementias with the support of BOLD awards.

• Data Grants to improve the analysis and timely reporting of data on Alzheimer's, cognitive decline, caregiving, and health disparities at the state and national levels.

Approximately 6.9 million Americans are living with Alzheimer's, and the United States spends more than $360 billion per year, including $231 billion in costs to Medicare and Medicaid. Barring any major breakthroughs to prevent, slow down, or cure Alzheimer's, the number of Americans with Alzheimer's is expected to double by 2060, costing the nation more than $1.1 trillion per year.

With Senator Collins' support, funding for the BOLD Infrastructure for Alzheimer's Act has grown from $10 million in fiscal year 2020 to $34 million in fiscal year 2024. In September 2020, the Maine Department of Health and Human Services received one of the first BOLD Program Awards. This investment has allowed for great progress in implementing the Maine State Plan for Alzheimer's Disease and Related Dementias. In September 2023, Maine received a second BOLD award from the CDC for Alzheimer's prevention programs, which provides implementation funding to build on its initial investments and allow the state to carry out the Maine Alzheimer's Prevention Program and the CDC's Healthy Brain Initiative Road Map.

The BOLD Infrastructure for Alzheimer's Reauthorization Act is endorsed by the Alzheimer's Association, the Alzheimer's Impact Movement, and UsAgainstAlzheimer's.

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