On April 20, Mary Ann Malack-Ragona, Executive Director/Chief Executive Officer, Alzheimer's Association Long Island, was one of the guest speakers at "A Forum on Alzheimer's Disease: An Update on Policy, research and Innovative Care" at Cold Spring Harbor's Genome Research Laboratory in Woodbury. The forum was hosted by U.S. Congressman Steve Israel.
Ms. Malack-Ragona's presentation, "Helping Patients, Supporting Loved Ones and Educating the Public," focused on advocacy and care of Alzheimer's patients and their families. She also mentioned the recent updates to the guidelines and criteria in diagnosing Alzheimer's and other dementias and how they will help those afflicted with the disease.
The purpose of the forum was to collaborate with other organizations in seeking solutions on how to leverage research, accelerate the development of treatments and broaden access to innovative care in order to improve the quality of life for millions of Americans.
An estimated 5.4 million Americans have Alzheimer's disease, according to the Alzheimer's Association. Of that number, 5.2 million are 65 years of age and older. That means one in eight people aged 65 and older have Alzheimer's. In New York State, 414,000 people have Alzheimer's and 60,000 of them live on Long Island. With the growing number of "baby boomers," Ms. Malack-Ragona says the number of those with Alzheimer's disease is expected to increase.
For more information about the Alzheimer's Association, please contact Ms. Malack-Ragona at (631) 820-8068 or visit us at www.alz.org/longisland.