The Legislature finds and declares all of the following:
(a)
Alzheimer’s disease and related dementia disorders are devastating health conditions that cause a loss of intellectual functioning so severe that they interfere with an individual’s daily functioning and eventually result in death. These
conditions cause serious financial, social, and emotional hardships on those affected and on their family caregivers.
(b)
Between 2008 and 2030 the number of Californians living with Alzheimer’s disease will double in both the general population and among the African American population. In this same period, there is expected to be a tripling of that disease among California’s Latino and Asian Pacific Islander populations.
(c)
Among California’s baby boomers 55 years of age and older, their lifetime risk for developing Alzheimer’s disease is one in eight.
(d)
Alzheimer’s disease is now the sixth leading cause of death in California.
(e)
Families provide almost three-quarters of the value of care for individuals living with Alzheimer’s disease in the
community and in facilities, amounting to approximately $72.7 billion out of an estimated total cost of $104 billion. These family caregivers are more likely to experience financial hardship, health difficulties, and a negative impact on their ability to work outside the home.
(f)
The cost to the Medi-Cal program for an individual with Alzheimer’s disease or a related dementia is two and one-half times greater than the cost for an individual without a diagnosis of dementia.
(g)
While scientists have made great strides in understanding Alzheimer’s disease and other causes of dementia, there is no known prevention or cure at this time.
(h)
It is the intent of the Legislature, in enacting this article, to establish a systematic program for the conduct of research regarding the cause, prevention, diagnosis, cure, and
treatment of Alzheimer’s disease and related disorders. The outcome of this research may have direct effects and consequences on the development of a comprehensive system that will provide diagnoses and treatment to victims of those health problems. This program shall award grants to eligible physicians, hospitals, laboratories, educational institutions, and other organizations and persons for the purpose of enabling those organizations and persons to conduct research.