FARMINGTON, ME – During a visit to Woodlands Memory Care of Farmington today, U.S. Senator Angus King (I-Maine) announced his support for the Building Our Largest Dementia Infrastructure for Alzheimer’s Act, or the BOLD Instrastructure for Alzheimer’s Act. The bipartisan legislation, introduced in November by Senator Susan Collins (R-Maine) and Senator Catherine Cortez Masto (D-Nev.), aims to create an Alzheimer’s public health infrastructure across the country to implement effective Alzheimer’s interventions focused on public health actions, such as increasing early detection and diagnosis, reducing risk, and preventing avoidable hospitalizations.

            “The residents and staff at Woodlands Memory Care are a powerful example of how community living helps seniors struggling with dementia and memory loss,” Senator King said. “With approximately 27,000 people in Maine living with Alzheimer’s disease today, it is critical we invest in infrastructure that expands research and development efforts to combat this disease and supports caregiving for the millions of family members and health care professionals caring for people with Alzheimer’s across the country.”

Specifically, the BOLD Instrastructure for Alzheimer’s Act would direct the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to establish Alzheimer’s Centers of Excellence to promote effective Alzheimer’s disease and caregiving interventions as well as educating the public on Alzheimer’s disease, cognitive decline, and brain health; award cooperative agreements to public health departments to support public-private partnerships; and increase data collection, analysis, and timely reporting.

Woodlands Memory Care of Farmington, opened in the fall of 2017, is part of Woodlands Senior Living, a family-owned corporation committed to helping seniors age comfortably and with dignity. Established in 1980, Woodlands Senior Living now has 12 facilities in seven locations throughout the state, cares for more than 500 residents, and employs about 300 Maine people.

As the state with the oldest median age, seniors are a vital part of Maine’s population, and Senator King has made it a priority to work to ensure they are well-represented in Washington. In 2015, he introduced the Ensuring Useful Research Expenditures is Key for Alzheimer’s (EUREKA) Act, bipartisan legislation that would create prize-based incentives to encourage more public-private collaboration in the fight against Alzheimer’s disease and other causes of dementia. Senator King is a cosponsor of the Health Outcomes, Planning, and Education (HOPE) for Alzheimer’s Act, a bill that would ensure patients and families have all the necessary information to fight the disease. The legislation was implemented by CMS in 2016. Senator King is also a strong proponent of strengthening telehealth, and is a cosponsor of the ECHO Act, which was enacted in 2016 and expands access to healthcare through telemedicine in rural and underserved areas.