siblings and friends, provide the daily assistance that allows
these individuals to remain at home for as long as possible; and
WHEREAS, The focus of this year's "Alzheimer's Disease
Awareness Month" is on the impact of this disease on the
informal caregiver; and
WHEREAS, In 2014, 671,000 Pennsylvanians provided over 765
million hours of unpaid care to a loved one with Alzheimer's
disease or related disorders, saving the Commonwealth more than
$9.3 billion in care costs; and
WHEREAS, Nationally, more than 15 million Americans provide
unpaid care for people with Alzheimer's disease or related
disorders; and
WHEREAS, While the typical caregiver is a woman with a full-
time job and a family of her own to look after, an estimated
250,000 children between 8 and 18 years of age provide help to
someone with Alzheimer's disease or related disorders; and
WHEREAS, The demands and financial challenges of caregiving
create a great deal of stress for caregivers, which, in turn,
puts their health at risk; and
WHEREAS, The Pennsylvania Alzheimer's Disease Planning
Committee, created to develop a State plan to address this
growing epidemic, finalized its report last year recommending
improvements in caregiver support; and
WHEREAS, A recurring concern when the planning committee was
conducting its research was the lack of caregiver support and
respite programs; and
WHEREAS, Respite eases the physical and emotional demands of
caregiving, helping to prevent caregiver burn-out and enabling
the care recipient to stay at home longer; therefore be it
RESOLVED, That the Senate designate the month of November
20150SR0253PN1447 - 2 -
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