Hawaii State Alzheimer’s Plan Overview
In 2011, the Hawaii Executive Office on Aging, in partnership with the Alzheimer’s Association Aloha Chapter, formed a special Task Force to develop a State Plan on Alzheimer’s Disease and Related Dementias (ADRD). The task force included representatives from state agencies, care provider organizations, community organizations, faith communities, and research centers as well as advocates, long-term care providers, consumers, and elder law attorneys. In December 2013, the Office on Aging published Hawaii 2025: State Plan for Alzheimer's Disease and Related Dementias.
In 2018, Governor Ige signed into law House Bill 1916, which mandated the Executive Office on Aging update and biannually report to the state legislature and the governor on the progress of the implementation of the Hawaii State Plan on Alzheimer’s Disease and Related Dementias. Following the receipt of a federal BOLD grant in October 2020, the Executive Office on Aging updated the Hawaii 2025 State Plan in alignment with the Healthy Brain Initiative (HBI) 2018-2023 Road Map. In September 2023, the Executive Office released the Hawai’i 2035: State Strategic Plan on Alzheimer’s Disease and Related Dementias. This newly revised plan proposes strategies to address data collection, program and policy change, public awareness and education, and workforce development.
Hawaii 2025 Policy Priorities
Improve Early Detection of Alzheimer's in Hawaii
11.5% of Hawaiian adults over 65 are living with Alzheimer’s, yet as many as half of them are not formally diagnosed. A timely diagnosis is the first step in ensuring that individuals living with dementia can benefit from care planning, clinical trials and new treatments, which can improve the quality of life and reduce the financial and emotional burden on caregivers. The Alzheimer’s Association is calling on state lawmakers to enact legislation ensuring Hawaiians age 65 and older have access to cognitive assessments during their Medicare annual wellness visit to increase early detection.
Strengthen Hawaii's Alzheimer's Research Capacity
Hawaii is home to over 31,000 individuals living with Alzheimer’s - a figure expected to rise as the state ages. With $240 million in annual Medicaid costs caring for this population, support is needed to better understand this disease and enable new discoveries supporting treatment, prevention and a cure. Establishing an Alzheimer’s Disease Research Center (ADRC) at the University of Hawaii would advance understanding of the disease and provide research specific to the unique genetic, cultural, and environmental factors of Hawaii’s residents, particularly its large Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) population. The Alzheimer’s Association is calling on lawmakers to assess the feasibility of establishing an ADRC and associated federal funding opportunities from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to improve diagnosis, treatment, and care for its residents while contributing valuable insights to the fight to end Alzheimer’s and other dementia.
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31,200
people living with Alzheimer’s in Hawaii
60,000
Hawaii residents are providing unpaid care
$240 Million
Medicaid cost of caring for people living with Alzheimer’s (2020)
376.3%
increase in Alzheimer’s deaths 2000-2021
16%
in hospice with a primary diagnosis of dementia
1.6%
increase of geriatricians in Hawaii needed to meet the demand in 2050
Resources to Drive Change in Hawaii
The following resources developed by AIM and the Alzheimer’s Association will help you learn more about the issues impacting people living with Alzheimer’s and their caregivers, how Hawaii policymakers are addressing these gaps, and how you can help drive change.