Help raise money to cure Alzheimer’s

To the editor:

I recently was selected as an ambassador for the Alzheimer's Association. Since I was the caregiver for my wife for 11 years, I made a commitment to help control and eliminate Alzheimer's by 2025. It is one of the only diseases we don't have a cure, control or prevention for to date.

There are 5 million people with Alzheimer's in the U.S. with 15.7 million caregivers. In the State of Iowa there are 62,000 people with Alzheimers and 150,000 caregivers. Alzheimer's is the most expensive disease in America. Here are a few facts:

' One in every 5 Medicare dollars is spent on someone with Alzheimer's or other dementia. By 2050 it will be $1 of every $3.

' For every $100 that the National Institutes of Health spends on Alzheimer's research, Medicare and Medicaid spend over $26,000 caring for those with the disease. This year we asked for $300 million more on research in 2016 making the total $800 million. We are spending $586 million in research this year. The panel of expert scientists say we need to invest $2 billion per year to reach our 2025 goal.

' Increase access to care planning. We must diagnose the disease as early as possible, care must be planned and the diagnosis must be noted on the medical records.

We need you to help us raise money so future generations will not have to face this terrible disease.

Richard W. Bice

Marion