Reprinted from the Assisted Living Federation of America:
A landmark report by Alzheimer’s Disease International says that in 2010 the global cost of dementia care likely will reach $604 billion, including direct medical care costs, and that 70 percent of those costs occur in North America and Western Europe. The organization calls on governments worldwide to make dementia a health priority and develop long-term care plans and policies for the escalating number of people diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease.
The report recommends that governments prioritize dementia care strategies as well as related research efforts. It also calls for establishing long-term care policies that would provide funding to seniors to help pay for dementia care services.
The costs outlined in the report are attributed to medical, personal, and residential dementia care and are expected to increase drastically. The report, “World Alzheimer Report 2010: The Global Impact of Dementia” states that if dementia care were a country, it would be the world’s 18th largest. If it were a company, it would be the world’s largest with the annual revenue exceeding both Wal-Mart and Exxon Mobile, and notes that the number of people with dementia is expected to increase substantially. Here are other findings from the report:
- After age 65, the likelihood of developing Alzheimer’s roughly doubles every five years
- At the age of 85, the odds of a person developing it are close to 50 percent
- In the World Alzheimer Report 2009, ADI estimated that there are 35.6 million people with dementia worldwide, increasing to 65.7 million
- By 2030, about 65.7 million people will have dementia and by 2050, 11.5 million will have dementia
- Alzheimer’s Disease International estimates that dementia costs will continue to soar along with the number of people diagnosed and calls for government action to help handle this impending crisis. Other conclusions the report came to include:
About six percent of people with dementia live in residential care environments, but this sector is expected to rise in urban and middle income countries. - Demand for medical care is anticipated to grow in the future and with improved awareness, better coverage of evidence-based interventions and potentially, with more effective treatments.
Learn more
- Read the executive summary of the report, “World Alzheimer Report: The Global Impact of Dementia.”
- Read the full World Alzheimer report.
- Read the news release.
- The magazine of the Assisted Living Federation of America (ALFA) provides regular articles about the latest strategies in dementia care, including resident needs and preferences. Read “Providing for Growing Needs” in the digital edition of Assisted Living Executive.
- Also from Assisted Living Executive, “New Reality for Residents With Alzheimer’s”.
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