A big part of this effort is going to be a funding proposal. Mary Ball with the Alzheimer’s Association is the lead on the public awareness and education campaign. I want a blueprint for the region so that we can make a difference and find the cure. The charge I laid out to each group was, I want an actionable plan. We had some folks that were caretakers themselves and some of the facilities represented to come up with recommendations and then the clinical and then the public awareness campaign. We have the biotech industry represented, we also have the Medical Association on that cure roundtable and we have the care roundtable which is a number of individuals involved in home-care. So we established the steering committee and we have a research committee, we’ve got the cure roundtable that consists of researchers. The next day I get a message from Kevin Faulconer and Kevin said, I read about the Alzheimer’s project, I’m all in. So we launched the Alzheimer’s project with a board action, Dave Roberts and myself, earlier this year. I firmly believe if there is a cure to be found with Alzheimer’s, it’s going to be right here in San Diego County. I can tell you that we have the brightest and the best researchers right here in San Diego County. They all said we would love to partner with the county. Perhaps we could be a partner, could help you in your research efforts to find a cure. I went to UCSD, I went to Salk, I went to Sanford-Burnham, I went to Scripps Research and said, I’m going to be chair of the board next year, is there a way the county, being the largest public health agency in the region, that we have a role to play. I couldn’t help but think, is there something that I, as chair of the board, and the Board of Supervisors and the county could do. The nationwide cost of this disease is over $200 billion a year and that is expected to exponentially double and triple into the future and there is no cure. Our federal government putting in $562 million into Alzheimer’s research is a drop in the bucket compared to cancer research or heart disease research. It’s the third leading cause of death in San Diego County and there is no cure. I learned that 80 percent of those who have Alzheimer’s are taken care of at home. I learned that at least 60,000 people in San Diego County are currently living with Alzheimer’s disease and that number is expected to double within the next 15 years as our aging population is expected to double. JACOB: Last year the Alzheimer’s Association had a workshop in Rancho San Diego. Here is an edited transcript of the interview. Jerold Chun of the Scripps Research Institute to discuss the project. The U-T Editorial Board recently met with Jacob, philanthropist Darlene Shiley and Dr. Key recommendations of the initiative, including one for a fund drive to spur research innovation, will be presented Tuesday at the supervisors’ meeting. The stark statistics prompted county Board of Supervisors Chairwoman Dianne Jacob to team with Supervisor Dave Roberts to propose local action to speed up the search for a cure and help the 60,000 area residents with the disease. Alzheimer’s is the third leading cause of death in San Diego County.
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