Dementias, Including Alzheimer's Disease Workgroup

Alzheimer’s disease is the most common cause of dementia and the sixth leading cause of death in U.S. adults.¹ Nearly 6 million people in the United States have Alzheimer’s, and that number will increase as the number of older adults grows.¹ Healthy People 2030 focuses on improving care and quality of life for people with Alzheimer’s and other causes of dementia. While there’s no cure for Alzheimer’s disease, early diagnosis and supportive care can improve quality of life. Efforts to ensure early diagnosis, increase awareness of diagnosis, and reduce preventable hospitalizations in adults with symptoms of cognitive decline, including memory loss, may improve health outcomes in people with dementia. It’s also important to address caregiving needs.

Core objectives selected by the DIA Workgroup aim to increase awareness of dementia diagnosis among people with dementia and their caregivers — and to reduce preventable hospitalizations among people with dementia. Additionally, DIA objectives aim to increase the proportion of people with symptoms of memory loss who discuss those symptoms with a health care provider.

All Healthy People 2030 core objectives meet several criteria — for example, they have baseline data, a direct impact on health, and an evidence base. They address goals related to health, function, and quality of life.