Minnesota
Increase Public Awareness, Early Detection And Diagnosis
Support Data Driven Decisions
Support and fund collection of dementia-related data, including cognitive decline data in 2020 and caregiver data in 2021 through the annual Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (BRFSS) surveys. BRFSS is the world's largest public health survey, conducted annually in all states and U.S. territories as a partnership between the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and state departments of health. BRFSS asks questions about health behaviors, access to care, and other health related topics to generate state-specific information about the impact and burden on public health. Collecting this specific dementia-related data in Minnesota will help us make smart policy decisions for all people living with dementia, their caregivers and our budgets.
Build a Dementia-Capable Workforce
Ensure a Dementia-Capable Workforce - Assisted Living Settings
As Minnesota creates a new license model for assisted living settings, we must ensure competency-based dementia training of all direct service, administrative, supervisory, and other staff who are involved in the delivery of care to those with Alzheimer's and other dementias in these settings. Direct care workers constitute one of the largest and fastest growing workforces in the country. These workers provide an estimated 70 to 80 percent of the paid hands-on long-term care and personal assistance to the elderly, individuals with disabilities and those suffering from chronic conditions.
Build a Dementia-Capable Workforce
Ensure a Dementia-Capable Workforce - First Responders
Law enforcement officers frequently interact with individuals who have Alzheimer's and other dementias in a variety of settings. They are generally among the first to be contacted regarding emergencies, abuse and exploitation. Many first responders receive little or no formal training to prepare them for the unique physical, behavioral, and communications challenges related to people with dementia. The Alzheimer's Association is supporting efforts to develop and implement dementia training standards for law enforcement agencies.
Enhance the Quality of Care in Residential Settings
Enhance Quality of Care in Residential Settings - Dementia Standards
Develop baseline standards of person-centered dementia care within an Assisted Living license model. As Minnesota considers the creation of a new licensing system, we should also implement minimum standards for dementia care providers including person-centered care practices, therapeutic activities and environments, physical plant standards, emergency procedures/safety plans, the process and criteria for placement within, transfer from and discharge from special care unit, as well as consumer rights in general.
Advance Alzheimer's Policy
Enhance Quality of Care in Residential Settings
Create an Assisted Living license designed to provide clear expectations for providers and older and vulnerable adults and to address the complexity and confusion in the market today. Licenses should include standards for staffing, training, admission and discharge criteria, as well as definitions of and certification for dementia care and protections to preserve access for individuals who rely on the Elderly Waiver Program.
Advance Alzheimer's Policy
Accelerate Alzheimer's Research
The Alzheimer's Association advocates for maintaining funding for Alzheimer's disease research through the state appropriation to the Minnesota Partnership for Biotechnology and Medical Genomics. As the most expensive disease in the nation according to recent research published in the New England Journal of Medicine, we must continue to support research to better understand Alzheimer's.
Minnesota State Plan Overview
In 2017 the Minnesota Legislature (2017 Session Law) called on the Minnesota Board on Aging to reconvene the Alzheimer's Disease Working Group (ADWG) to review and revise the 2011 report, Preparing Minnesota for Alzheimer's: the Budgetary, Social and Personal Impacts. The ADWG was appointed in late 2017 and met throughout 2018. Like the first work group created in 2009 when the Minnesota Legislature first charged the Minnesota Board on Aging to create a plan, this working group made recommendations for policies and programs that would prepare Minnesota for the future. The 2018 work group was led by a Minnesotan who is living with mild cognitive impairment and included health care providers, family caregivers, researchers, representatives from state and local health and human services agencies. The ADWG gathered expert research and background information and solicited input from the general public. The Alzheimer's Disease Working Group Legislative Report was published in January 2019 and presented to the Minnesota Legislature.
Minnesota State Advocacy Day
February 04, 2019
Join us at the State Capitol in St. Paul on Monday, February 4th. We'll be starting the day at 10 am with a program in the Rotunda of the Capitol Building. After lunch, you'll be spend the afternoon meeting with your state legislators and advocating for our Alzheimer's legislative priorities. Email [email protected] for more information.
2020 Advocacy Forum
March 22-24, 2020 alz.org/forum
As an Alzheimer's advocate, you've worked to advance critical public policy, making a difference in the lives of all those impacted by Alzheimer's. Together we've achieved great increases in federal Alzheimer's research funding and secured critical advances in care and support. But we can't take our successes for granted — we need to keep the pressure on.
Join us in Washington for an inspiring three-day event filled with networking, training and education.
Be part of the movement that's making a difference in the fight against Alzheimer's.
Sign Up to Learn More About Advocacy Opportunities in Minnesota
State Affairs Contact Beth McMullen | 6122033530 | [email protected]
Elected Officials
Enter your address here to see your elected officials' positions on Alzheimer's and ways you can contact them to support the Alzheimer's community.
Number of People Aged 65 and Older With Alzheimer's by Age
| Year | 65-74 | 75-84 | 85+ | TOTAL |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2019 | 14,000 | 40,000 | 44,000 | 97,000 |
| 2025 | 17,000 | 51,000 | 48,000 | 120,000 |
Percentage change from 2019
Medicaid
$876
MILLION
Medicaid costs of caring for people with Alzheimer's (2019)
22.7%
change in costs from 2019 to 2025
Medicare
$20,430
per capita Medicare spending on people with dementia (in 2018 dollars)
HOSPICE (2016)
#
of people in hospice have a primary diagnosis of dementia
of people in hospice with a primary diagnosis of dementia
Hospitals (2015)
#
of emergency department visits per 1,000 people with dementia
dementia patient hospital readmission rate
Caregiving
Number of Caregivers
Total Hours of Unpaid Care
Total Value of Unpaid Care
Higher Health Costs of Caregivers
Number of Deaths from Alzheimer's Disease (2017)
| 6th | leading cause of death in Minnesota |
For more information, view the 2019 Alzheimer's Disease Facts and Figures report at alz.org/facts.
U.S. Statistics
Over 5 million Americans are living with Alzheimer's, and as many as 14 million will have the disease in 2050. The cost of caring for those with Alzheimer's and other dementias is estimated to total $290 billion in 2019, increasing to $1.1 trillion (in today's dollars) by mid-century. Nearly one in every three seniors who dies each year has Alzheimer's or another dementia.