Greetings from Blogworld!
Well, it has been a whirlwind spring for us in both the MN and ND legislatures. I think it’s safe to say that our chapter has never before seen this kind of legislative progress being made in both states at the same time. It’s been very gratifying for us to see the hard work of our staff and our volunteer advocates being rewarded with legislation that’s going to do so much for families and communities living with Alzheimer’s.
In Minnesota, House File 1760 passed just last week and was signed by Governor Pawlenty on Friday. This is an omnibus bill that covers a lot of health care-related ground. You can go here (https://www.revisor.leg.state.mn.us/bin/bldbill.php?bill=ccrhf1760A.html&session=ls86) to read the whole thing; the section that belongs to us is section 110 (way down at the bottom). Here’s what it proposes: the Minnesota Board on Aging (http://www.mnaging.org) will convene a working group of about 13-20 people to spend 18 months studying Alzheimer’s disease in Minnesota. The group will include representatives from facility industries such as nursing homes and assisted livings, community-based services such as adult day providers, the medical provider community, the research community, the Alzheimer’s Association and the state of Minnesota, as well as persons with Alzheimer’s and primary caregivers. The charge on the working group is to “examine the array of needs of individuals diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease, services available to meet these needs, and the capacity of the state and current providers to meet these and future needs.” As I understand it, this is basically a state-level version of what the national Alzheimer’s Study Group did for the last two years before their testimony in front of Congress in March. (You can watch the testimony yourself here: http://aging.senate.gov/hearing_detail.cfm?id=310462&. About twenty of our advocates had the opportunity to attend the hearing in person in Washington, D.C., and they said it was a really moving experience.) When the working group is done with this comprehensive study, they will bring their findings back to the state and make recommendations on policy and legislative actions that they believe should be taken.
I’m really interested to hear about what the group finds. I didn’t know much about Alzheimer’s when I came to work at the Association in 2007; no one in my family has ever had it, and it’s not a disease that gets a lot of popular attention. I’m sure there are many reasons for that, but I think it can only be a good thing to shine a spotlight on Alzheimer’s and on what people with the disease, their caregivers, their friends and their communities are living with every day. Nobody should have to feel like they are alone in their struggle against this disease, and I believe this working group demonstrates the commitment that Minnesotans have toward supporting each other. I’m always so proud when I tell people that I work for the Alzheimer’s Association—I’m proud of the education and support we give to families and professionals, I’m proud of the events we produce that raise money and awareness, and I’m really proud today of the work that’s been done in getting this bill passed. Not to mention all the other valuable legislation we’ve been part of—the Vulnerable Adult Act (https://www.revisor.leg.state.mn.us/bin/bldbill.php?bill=H0818.6.html&session=ls86), Uniform Guardianship Bills in both Minnesota and North Dakota, and the Dementia Care Services Bill in North Dakota. But those are stories to share another time!
As always, if you’ve got any questions about our advocacy work, or if you’d like to get involved yourself as an advocate, please give us a call at (952) 830-0512 or visit our Web site at http://www.alz.org/mnnd and click on “Advocacy” on the left side of the page. Thanks for reading!
--Kate Tripoli is the Administrative Assistant at the Alzheimer’s Association Minnesota – North Dakota and serves as the primary support staff for the Public Policy Committee.
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Hello from ND! I think it is great that we've started this blog - what a fabulous way for us to connect and share with each other! The successes we have seen in the public policy arena this year are phenomenal and something we should definitely not keep to ourselves.
ReplyDeleteOur big success in ND was the passage of HB 1043 for Dementia Services. The bill will establish a statewide dementia care consultation and community education program, both of which are severely needed, especially in the more rural areas of the state (which is pretty much all of it).
I know that everyone who took part in getting this bill passed learned a great deal along the way. We learned that ND government has interesting idiosyncrasies. We also learned that support for this bill was nearly unanimous in both chambers of the legislature and among both parties, Republican and Democrat alike. Alzheimer's disease knows no party lines, demographics, or socioeconomic status.
What I learned most, and what I think is vitally important for all of us to remember is something that Margaret Mead said many years ago: "Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world; indeed, it's the only thing that ever has."
So what's next for the ND legislation? The Dept of Human Services will release a Request for Proposals (RFP), probably within the next month, and the Alzheimer's Association will submit a proposal outlining our ideas on the implementation of the program. Cross your fingers that we are granted the contract to fulfill the requirements of the bill!