IV 
113TH CONGRESS 
2D SESSION 
H. RES. 489 
Expressing the sense of Congress regarding the need to facilitate and promote 
a robust response to the looming global crisis of Alzheimer’s and other 
forms of dementia. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
FEBRUARY 25, 2014 
Mr. SMITH of New Jersey (for himself, Ms. WATERS, Mr. BURGESS, Mr. 
FATTAH, and Mr. MEADOWS) submitted the following resolution; which 
was referred to the Committee on Foreign Affairs, and in addition to the 
Committee on Energy and Commerce, for a period to be subsequently de-
termined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions 
as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned 
RESOLUTION 
Expressing the sense of Congress regarding the need to 
facilitate and promote a robust response to the looming 
global crisis of Alzheimer’s and other forms of dementia. 
Whereas dementia is a degenerative condition caused by dis-
ease of the brain—usually of a chronic or progressive na-
ture—in which there is disturbance of multiple higher 
cortical functions, including memory, thinking, orienta-
tion, comprehension, calculation, learning capacity, lan-
guage and judgment. 
Whereas between 5 to 7 percent of the world’s population age 
60 and above are estimated to have dementia. 
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Whereas dementia can be caused by various factors, including 
traumatic or localized brain injury, a temporary interrup-
tion of the brain’s supply of blood or oxygen, infection, 
stroke, brain hemorrhage, prolonged seizures or even ex-
cessive alcohol use. 
Whereas Alzheimer’s disease is the most common form of de-
mentia, accounting for 60–70% of dementia cases. Other 
forms of dementia include vascular dementia (caused by 
damage from impaired blood flow), frontotemporal de-
mentia (involving degeneration of the frontal lobe of the 
brain governing mood and behavior), semantic dementia 
(caused by damage to the left temporal lobe governing 
speech) and dementia with Lewy bodies (involving abnor-
mal aggregation of protein inside nerve cells in the 
brain). 
Whereas, according to Alzheimer’s Disease International, 
more than 44 million people worldwide are suffering from 
Alzheimer’s or dementia, a figure that will expand to 
more than 75 million people by 2030 and more than 115 
million people by 2050 if the current trajectory of the 
disease remains unchanged. Globally, a new case of de-
mentia occurs every four seconds. 
Whereas Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias impose a 
devastating, unsustainable and rapidly growing toll on 
the health and fiscal well-being of the United States and 
all countries. In 2010, the annual global societal eco-
nomic cost of Alzheimer’s and dementia was estimated to 
be $604 billion, about 1 percent of the world’s Gross Do-
mestic Product (GDP). 
Whereas more than 62 percent of people with dementia glob-
ally live in low-to-middle income countries, and by 2050 
this percentage will exceed 70 percent. 
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Whereas Standard & Poors rating agency has identified glob-
al aging as ‘‘the dominant threat to global economic sta-
bility’’ that will ‘‘lead to profound changes in economic 
growth for countries around the world.’’ 
Whereas no disease-modifying therapy or treatment for Alz-
heimer’s exists today. Dementia can be classified as ei-
ther reversible or irreversible, fewer than 10% of cases of 
dementia are due to causes that currently may be re-
versed with treatment. 
Whereas in January 2012, the United Nations General As-
sembly adopted the political declaration of the high-level 
meeting of the General Assembly on the Prevention and 
Controls of Non-communicable disease that recognized 
Alzheimer’s as being ‘‘an important cause of morbidity’’ 
and a corresponding ‘‘need to provide equitable access to 
effective programmes and health- care interventions.’’ 
Whereas in 2012, the United States adopted a National Plan 
to Address Alzheimer’s Disease that set as its first goal 
preventing and effectively treating Alzheimer’s disease by 
2025. 
Whereas in December 2013 the G8 nations convened the G8 
Dementia Summit and established a similar goal to 
‘‘identify a cure or a disease-modifying therapy for de-
mentia by 2025 and to increase collectively and signifi-
cantly the amount of funding for dementia research to 
reach that goal. 
Whereas the G8 political declaration called for greater inter-
national collaboration and sharing on Alzheimer’s re-
search and for the development of a coordinated inter-
national research plan that ‘‘accounts for the current 
state of the science, identifies gaps and opportunities, 
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and lays out a plan for working together to address 
them.’’ 
Whereas the G8 declaration also called for ‘‘greater innova-
tion to improve the quality of life for people with demen-
tia and their caretakers while reducing emotional and fi-
nancial burden’’ and for ‘‘exploring the possibility of de-
veloping a private and philanthropic fund to support 
global dementia innovation.’’: Now, therefore, be it 
Resolved, That it should be the policy of the U.S. Gov-
ernment to encourage and facilitate as feasible: 
1. The Secretary of Health and Human Serv-
ices shall enter into negotiations with the World 
Health Organization to develop a Global Alzheimer’s 
and Dementia Action Plan focused on the following 
areas: 
(A) Research, including clinical research 
and clinical trials, and regulatory issue; 
(B) Clinical care; 
(C) Supportive services for patients and 
for caregivers, including supports using innova-
tive technologies; 
(D) Clinical care; 
(E) Supportive services for patients and 
for caregivers, including supports using innova-
tive technologies; 
(F) Prevention and health promotion; 
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(G) Development of a stable and sustained 
international commitment to Alzheimer’s re-
search, and 
(H) Public awareness and education, par-
ticularly efforts aimed at reducing stigmas and 
increasing the inclusion of persons with Alz-
heimer’s and dementia within civil society. 
2. In addition to the WHO, the effort should 
involve all other nations that have adopted national 
Alzheimer’s and/or dementia plans or strategies and, 
to the greatest extent possible, connect to compo-
nents of one or more of said plans. Nations without 
plans yet willing to participate in developing the 
global strategy can do so if they commit to providing 
resources to fund the effort. 
3. The Secretary of Health and Human Serv-
ices along with the Secretary of the Treasury should 
develop the foundation for a Global Alzheimer’s 
Fund that would provide resources to support imple-
mentation of specific strategies of the Global Plan. 
This early-stage effort shall include: 
(A) Priority areas of focus, 
(B) Governance structure and 
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(C) Participation of other government, pri-
vate entities and non-governmental organiza-
tions 
The U.S. government should assign a high-level per-
son to lead and coordinate all Global Alzheimer’s 
and dementia initiatives including representing the 
United States in all convenings focused on devel-
oping the plan, fund, and corresponding components. 
4. The G8 nations, working with the G20, G77 
and other forums including the Organization for 
Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) 
should investigate systems to monitor and provide 
care to persons with Alzheimer’s and other forms of 
dementia in developing countries to help build care 
delivery capacity. 
5. The U.S. Agency for International Develop-
ment, in collaboration with all other relevant U.S. 
agencies, should investigate the foreign aid implica-
tions of Alzheimer’s and other forms of dementia 
and inform Congress as to the need for possible 
changes to foreign healthcare-related foreign assist-
ance. 
6. In order to maximize the possibility of suc-
cessful treatment for Alzheimer’s and other forms of 
dementia, the U.S. government should encourage 
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and facilitate partnerships with the private sector, 
such as the current partnership between the Na-
tional Institutes of health and 10 pharmaceutical 
companies to identify new approaches to treat Alz-
heimer’s and other medical conditions. 
Æ 
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