Ronald Reagan Alzheimer's Breakthrough Act of 2004

Bill: 108-s-2533
Sponsor: Sen. Mikulski, Barbara A. [D-MD]
Introduced: 2004-06-16 in the Senate
Policy area: Health
Subjects: Aging
Alzheimer's disease
Authorization
Cardiovascular diseases
Caregivers
Chronically ill
Civil Rights and Liberties, Minority Issues
Clinical trials
Commerce
Communication in medicine
Conferences
Congress
Congressional reporting requirements
Consumer protection
Crime and Law Enforcement
Data banks
Department of Health and Human Services
Department of Justice
Disabled
Economics and Public Finance
Excise tax
Families
Federal aid to Indians
Federal aid to health facilities
Federal aid to research
Finance and Financial Sector
Government Operations and Politics
Government paperwork
Government publicity
Health education
Health information systems
Home care services
Income tax
Indexing (Economic policy)
Indian medical care
Insurance premiums
Labor and Employment
Lifestyle
Long-term care
Long-term care insurance
Medical economics
Medical records
Medical research
Menopause
Minorities
Missing persons
Native Americans
Patients' rights
Performance measurement
Pharmaceutical research
Preventive medicine
Quality of care
Research centers
Research grants
Respite care
Right of privacy
Science, Technology, Communications
Social Welfare
Tax credits
Tax deductions
Tax penalties
Taxation
Volunteer workers
Women
Women's health

Summary:
action_date: 2004-06-16
text: 
Ronald Reagan Alzheimer's Breakthrough Act of 2004 - Amends the Public Health Service Act to make Alzheimer's disease research a priority within the National Institute on Aging. Requires the Director of the Institute to: (1) undertake an Alzheimer's Disease Prevention Initiative to accelerate the discovery of new risk and protective factors, to rapidly identify therapies and preventive interventions, and to implement effective prevention and treatment strategies; (2) conduct and support cooperative clinical research regarding Alzheimer's; and (3) conduct research concerning early detection and diagnosis, the relationship between Alzheimer's and vascular disease, and interventions designed to help caregivers. Authorizes the Director to establish a National Alzheimer's Coordinating Center to facilitate collaboration among Alzheimer's Disease Centers and Alzheimer's Disease Research Centers.
 
Requires the Secretary of Health and Human Services, acting through the Director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), to educate the public and public health community regarding Alzheimer's disease.
 
Authorizes the Secretary to award grants or cooperative agreements to develop coordinated respite care programs on a statewide basis. Defines &quot;respite care&quot; to mean planned or emergency care provided to a child or adult with a special need in order to provide temporary relief to the family caregiver of such child or adult. Directs the Secretary to award a grant or cooperative agreement to a public or private nonprofit entity to establish a National Resource Center on Lifespan Respite Care.
 
Amends the Internal Revenue Code to allow: (1) a nonrefundable tax credit for each individual certified as having long-term care needs and for whom the taxpayer is acting as a caregiver; (2) a tax deduction for long-term care premiums paid under a qualified insurance contract; and (3) qualified long-term care insurance to be offered in a cafeteria plan and flexible spending arrangements.


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2004-06-16
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Finance.
action_date: 2004-06-16
text: Sponsor introductory remarks on measure. (CR S6901)
action_date: 2004-06-16
text: Introduced in Senate