Editor's note: Times columnist Mark McCarter writes occasionally about the subject of Alzheimer's and dementia, which has impacted his family.
WASHINGTON, D.C. -- A man doing the business of government in the Longworth House Office Building Wednesday afternoon spied still another explosion of purple squeezing into an elevator.
"I feel like I'm out of place without a purple sash today," he said.
It was a purple reign.
In and out of congressional office buildings was a constant ebb and flow of people in purple ties, shirts, sweaters, skirts and sashes, a reminder that the 25th annual Alzheimer's Association Advocacy Forum was taking place.
More than 1,000 officials and advocates convened here, with seminars, a banquet -- singer Glen Campbell, 77, was presented a "Profiles in Dignity" award for his personal fight -- and a day devoted to lobbying United States senators and congressmen.
Jim Ward, CEO and executive director of the Mid-South chapter, which includes Huntsville in its territory, was visiting 14 different offices. Two-thirds through his schedule, he admitted, "We haven't seen a real, live congressman yet."
That's OK. They weren't dodging. Fact is, it's often as effective to meet with the legislators' advisors on health matters, who can themselves become advocates.
There are two simple requests from the Alzheimer's Association and its purple, passionate, amateur lobbyists, according to Susan Crowson, the director of programs and advocacy:
-- Allot $100 million in the budget for Alzheimer's research and education.
This is where I confess my discomfort. The two previous days I was with Huntsville leaders eager for our share of the pie in national defense spending. I know it's two different chunks of budget, but what's one less missile, I wondered, and what could that mean to research?
The $100 million could be a wise investment. Alzheimer's is the sixth-leading cause of death in our country and five million Americans have it. It will become an epidemic as we live longer and longer. But if the onset can be delayed by five years, Medicare and Medicaid costs can be cut in half.
-- Pass the HOPE Act to assure better support for the patients and caregivers after diagnosis. Imagine it as a "bundling" process, like your cable, Internet and cell phone. It be diagnosis, support and planning.
If there's a cancer diagnosis, within minutes, it seems, you're in a conference room with oncologists and counselors, learning more and making a blueprint for treatment. With Alzheimer's, that's not as prevalent.
I joined Ward and Suelen Hernandez at the office of Rep. Mo Brooks, from Alabama's Fifth District as they met with aide Andrew Tharp.
Hernandez solemnly related how Alzheimer's had impacted her life and, as a young mother, how the genetics of the disease already has her worried about her own children.
I related some of our family's story, but more about those I've heard since writing about my mother's Alzheimer's. Throughout many of the emails and calls I got was a thread of "what do we do?"
That's where HOPE can help.
There's no cure for Alzheimer's. Cold fact is, there's not a lot that can be done for the patient. But there's a lot more that can be done, simply and cost-effectively, for the family.
Crowson introduced me to an advocate from East Tennessee, who was bashful about having her name used.
"It's not a political issue," the woman told me. "It's not a Democratic issue. It's not a Republican issue. It's not a liberal issue. It's not a conservative issue. It's not a Tea Party issue."
She paused briefly, then said, "It's a human issue."
Contact Mark McCarter at mmccarter@al.com
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