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| Capitol Hill Visit with Congressman John Boozman.
L-R: Steven Kelly (Fort Smith), Charla Sparks (Lavaca),
Allison Hogue, Congressman Boozman, Frank and Gen Broyles. |
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Join the cause
The Alzheimer’s Association--Oklahoma/Arkansas Chapter invites you to become an Alzheimer advocate. Join us and speak up for the needs and rights of people with Alzheimer’s disease and their families.
Add your voice to ours — become an advocate today.
Upcoming events
Join us for Memory Walk.
What is an advocate?
Alzheimer advocates play an important role in improving the quality of care and quality of life for people with Alzheimer’s disease and their families by working to improve dementia care and services; improve access to community-based care; improve quality care in residential settings; and expand funding for research and public programs serving people with dementia.
Read one advocate's story...
As an advocate, you will:
- Receive regular updates about current legislative and public policy issues.
- Stay on top of policy and legislative issues through alerts and updates.
- Make calls or write to legislators to forward public policy priorities to improve quality of life for those living with Alzheimer’s.
Arkansas advocacy
Memory Walk - Each of our walks hosts a public policy table and encourages walkers to sign up to become advocates.
Day on the Hill - During the 2009 Legislative Session, both staff and advocates will spend time at the Arkansas State Capitol to talk to our local representatives and attend committee meetings.
Capitol Hill - Alzheimer’s advocates from across the country gather at the Public Policy Forum to learn about key policy priorities and meet with Members of Congress to discuss Alzheimer’s issues.
Oklahoma advocacy
Oklahoma Public Policy Priorities - 2009
More than 70,000 residents are living with Alzheimer’s disease or a related dementia. Oklahoma policymakers must address this growing catastrophe.
Improve Adult Guardianship Jurisdiction. We support the enactment of the Uniform Adult Guardianship and Protective Proceedings Jurisdiction Act. Currently, the U.S. has more than 50 different adult guardianship systems, and no channel exists for courts in the state of Oklahoma to communicate with courts in different states about adult guardianship jurisdiction issues. This legislation:
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Enables courts in different states to communicate with each other about adult guardianship and determine which the appropriate court to oversee the guardianship process is.
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Avoids unnecessary financial and emotional challenges for families.
Encourage law enforcement to utilize "Silver Alert" resolution passed by the Oklahoma House of Representatives in 2006 and the Alzheimer's Association's Safe Return program to improve safety for people with dementia.
Support implementation of training for CNA’s that assure quality dementia training.
Additional Items we are supporting this year.
Create an Accountable State Plan for Alzheimer’s. The state of Oklahoma needs to build dementia-capable programs for the growing number of people with the disease. The plan will prepare Oklahoma to address a range of issues including:
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dementia capable support services for people at all stages of the disease;
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quantifying the number of individuals with Alzheimer’s in a state;
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quality of long-term care;
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Medicaid coverage of long-term care for those who cannot afford it;
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availability of diagnostic services;
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And safety of persons who wander.
Federal advocacy
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