THIS WAS NEEDED TWENTY YEARS AGO.
ALL DUE RESPECT, IT IS REALLY TIME FOR
DONATO TO STEP DOWN.
THIS BILL LONG OVERDUE. WE NEED FRESH BLOOD ON BEACON HILL THAT WILL DO THINGS QUICKLY, EFFICIENTLY AND MAKE A DIFFERENCE.
Rep. Paul J. Donato, D-Medford, recently joined his colleagues in the House to pass legislation that establishes an Alzheimer’s Disease Advisory Council. The bill also requires the Executive Office of Health and Human Services to conduct an assessment on existing state efforts and implement a state plan to address the disease.
Currently 120,000 individuals in Massachusetts have Alzheimer’s or a related dementia, and experts predict the prevalence of Alzheimer’s will increase 25 percent in the next decade. Currently, more than 300,000 people in Massachusetts act as caregivers to one these patients. In 2017, Medicaid costs for caring for people with the disease totaled $1.55 billion.
“Massachusetts is a national leader in health care,” House Speaker Robert A. DeLeo, D-Winthrop, said. “This legislation ensures our ongoing commitment to confronting the largest unaddressed public health threat facing our nation. I believe it will strengthen our ability to provide quality care and ongoing support to the growing number of people diagnosed with Alzheimer’s throughout the Commonwealth.”
