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7/3/2025
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New law will boost education and awareness of Alzheimer’s, dementia
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STATE HOUSE — A bill from Deputy Majority Whip Mia A. Ackerman and Sen. Pamela J. Lauria to improve public health education about Alzheimer’s and dementia has been signed into law.
“Despite the staggering impacts of this disease, public education about Alzheimer’s still lags behind. People know about Alzheimer’s, but they don’t know what to look for, and they don’t know what to do when they see it,” said Representative Ackerman (D-Dist. 45, Cumberland, Lincoln). “That’s why I’m so happy to introduce this bill to both educate the public and medical providers on the value of regular cognitive assessments during annual wellness visits and the available treatments and methods of effective care planning for patients.”
The bill (2025-H 5619, 2025-S 0481) directs the Department of Health to work with the state advisory council on Alzheimer’s to develop and distribute educational materials concerning Alzheimer’s and dementia through their existing public health outreach programs. These materials will educate the public and medical providers on topics including the importance of prevention, of recognizing early warning signs, how other chronic health conditions impact and contribute to Alzheimer’s and dementia, the value of regular cognitive assessments during annual wellness visits and the available treatments and methods of effective care planning for patients.
“Right now, the treatments we have for Alzheimer’s and dementia can only slow down the progression of the disease, which is why it is vitally important that we catch them as soon as possible so that those medications and treatments have the opportunity to do the best that they can for patients and their families,” said Senator Lauria (D-Dist. 32, Barrington, Bristol, East Providence), who works as primary care nurse practitioner. “Every day I see people who are worried about their memory and oftentimes they are quite far down the continuum of their dementia, limiting the effectiveness of treatment. This bill addresses this issue by working directly with clinicians to give them tools to do more effectively diagnose Alzheimer’s and dementia early, when treatments can do the most good.”
Representative Ackerman and Senator Lauria spoke in March at the Rhode Island Alzheimer’s Association State Advocacy Day in support of this bill, which was one of the association’s top legislative priorities for the year.
For more information, contact:
Tristan Grau, Publicist
State House Room B20
Providence, RI 02903
401.222.4935
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