O'Connor makes plea for Alzheimer's aid
WASHINGTON "Our nation certainly is ready to get deadly serious about this
deadly disease," she told the Senate Special Committee on Aging.
She has a personal stake. "My beloved husband John suffers
Alzheimer's," she said. "He is not in very good shape at
present."
O'Connor stepped down as the first female Supreme Court justice
in 2005 to move her husband to an assisted care center in Phoenix,
near two of their children. Intensely private, she has said little
until now of the family's experience except that she regretted
having to leave the high court so soon.
She congratulated Congress for passing legislation that would
ban discrimination based on genetic testing for a broad range of
diseases, including Alzheimer's. "My own sons I have not wanted to
go be tested ... out of fear they would be ineligible for
insurance," she said.
More than 5 million Americans are living with Alzheimer's
disease. The number is poised to skyrocket, with 16 million people
forecast to have the mind-destroying illness by 2050. Today's
treatments only temporarily alleviate symptoms. Already, the
Alzheimer's Association estimates that 10 million people share the
overwhelming task of caring for a relative or friend with it.
"I suspect that you will not hear from many of my fellow
caregivers directly ... simply because they do not have the
resources to take time away from their loved ones in order to come
before you," O'Connor said in her prepared testimony.
Against that somber backdrop, a group of scientists, former
politicians and well-known names like O'Connor have teamed up to
create what they call a "national strategy" to jumpstart efforts
to speed research into new Alzheimer's treatments and improve help
for caregivers.
The so-called Alzheimer's Study Group won't have its report
ready until next year, but began pushing lawmakers Wednesday to
start thinking about the needed investment despite tight economic
times. Public funding for Alzheimer's has been stagnant for five
years, O'Connor noted.
"You will never meet an Alzheimer's survivor - there are
none," former House Speaker Newt Gingrich, who co-founded the
group, said in his testimony.
