Central ND News

BISMARCK – The Bismarck Memory Cafe, a support group for individuals with Alzheimer’s or other types of dementia and their loved ones, meets monthly for fellowship and resource sharing. The gatherings feature guest speakers who share their knowledge and experience with the disease. Alzheimer's affects more than 13,000 North Dakotans, with 19,000 unpaid caregivers shouldering the responsibility of care.

U.S. Senator Kevin Cramer (R-ND) spoke at the Bismarck Memory Cafe today, highlighting recent legislative victories he sponsored and helped pass. He also shared his family’s personal experience in watching his mother, Clarice Cramer, pass away from Alzheimer’s in 2021.

“My mother passed away with Alzheimer’s several years ago and I’m always impressed by the community of people who experience this disease including their families, their loved ones, and their medical care teams,” said Cramer. “You can take your struggles and you can wallow, or you can take your struggles and turn them into a ministry. Today’s experience at the Bismarck Memory Cafe was more about what I gained from them than what I could possibly give them.”

Throughout his time in the U.S. Senate, Cramer cosponsored several pieces of legislation to increase access to critical services and support for those affected by Alzheimer’s:

- The Comprehensive Care for Alzheimer’s Act to direct the Center for Medicare & Medicaid Innovation (CMMI) to test a different payment structure for dementia care management.

- The National Alzheimer's Project (NAPA) Reauthorization Act to extend the National Alzheimer’s Project to 2035. The project was first authorized in 2011 and supports coordination of federal planning programs related to Alzheimer's disease and dementias such as healthy aging and cognitive decline.

- The Alzheimer’s Accountability and Investment Act which would require the National Institutes of Health to annually submit an estimate of its budget and personnel needs for carrying out initiatives pursuant to the National Alzheimer's Project for review and transmittal to Congress.

Additionally, Cramer joined U.S. Senator Shelley Moore Capito (R-WV) in sending a letter to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) regarding the CMS requirement for Coverage with Evidence Development (CED) for monoclonal antibodies drugs designated for treating Alzheimer’s. The letter encouraged CMS to take steps to remove these requirements for FDA-approved treatments to expand broader access for Alzheimer’s patients beyond clinical trials.