TITLE
RESOLUTION URGING THE UNITED STATES CONGRESS TO ENACT H.R. 5191 OR SIMILAR LEGISLATION TO DIRECT THE SECRETARY OF VETERANS AFFAIRS TO ESTABLISH ALZHEIMER�S DISEASE RESEARCH, EDUCATION, AND CLINICAL CENTERS

BODY
WHEREAS, dementia is a general term for disorders involving a decline in memory, thinking, judgment, and learning ability; and
WHEREAS, Alzheimer�s disease is the sixth leading cause of death in the United States, with death usually coming as a result of secondary infections such as pneumonia and bladder infections, which are common in incapacitated patients, as well as the inability to follow medical instructions; and
WHEREAS, at present, there is no cure for Alzheimer�s disease; and
WHEREAS, the United States Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) provides dementia care including Alzheimer�s disease care through the VA health system; and
WHEREAS, VA researchers have long been interested in Alzheimer�s disease; and
WHEREAS, a 2014 study by researchers from the San Francisco VA Health Care System and the University of California, San Francisco, found that veterans over the age of 55 who had been captured and interned as Prisoners of War had about a 50 percent greater risk of developing dementia in later life; and
WHEREAS, according to the same study, those veterans who had been both prisoners of war and developed posttraumatic stress disorder had more than double the risk of developing dementia in later life; and
WHEREAS, according to the same study, veterans who had a diagnosis of traumatic brain injury had a 60 percent greater risk of developing dementia over a nine-year period, compared with veterans of the same age who had not suffered a traumatic brain injury; and
WHEREAS, on March 7, 2018, Congressman Mike Coffman (R-Colorado) introduced House of Representatives (H.R.) 5191 for consideration during the 115th Congress; and
WHEREAS, H.R. 5191 would amend title 38, United States Code, to direct the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to establish Alzheimer�s Disease research, education, and clinical centers; and
WHEREAS, this bill is currently pending before the 115th Congress; and
WHEREAS, this Board supports the United States military personnel and our veterans; and
WHEREAS, this Board supports Alzheimer�s disease research and education,
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS OF MIAMI-DADE COUNTY, FLORIDA, that this Board:
Section 1. Urges the United States Congress to enact H.R. 5191, or similar legislation that directs the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to establish Alzheimer�s disease research, education, and clinical centers.
Section 2. Directs the Clerk of the Board to transmit a certified copy of this resolution to the members of the Miami-Dade County Congressional Delegation and the U.S. Secretary of Veterans Affairs.
Section 3. Directs the County�s federal lobbyists to advocate for the action set forth in Section 1 above, and authorizes and directs the Office of Intergovernmental Affairs to amend the 2018 Federal Legislative Package to include this item.