Alzheimer's Disease as a Public Health Issue: Using Data for Action

Brief Summary:
Alzheimer’s disease is a public health crisis. However, the public health community has been slow to identify the looming crisis posed by the rise in age-related disease, including cognitive disorders like Alzheimer’s.  Today, over 5 million Americans have Alzheimer’s disease.  Caring for those with Alzheimer’s and other dementias cost society a total of $200 billion in 2012.  Over 15 million family members and friends provide unpaid care for people with Alzheimer’s –care valued at $210 billion.  For the first time since its inception in 1979, the federal government’s Healthy People report includes national health goals and objectives related to Alzheimer’s disease and other dementias. In 2011, 22 states added the Impact of Cognitive Impairment Module to their state’s Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (BRFSS). This was the first use of the new CDC-approved module designed to collect information about the impact of cognitive impairment. This presentation will provide information on Alzheimer’s disease as a public health issue, the latest data collected from the BRFSS, and share opportunities for translating epidemiological data into public health action.