Wisconsin’s Growing Alzheimer’s Population: A Study on Appropriate Legal Interventions

The Alzheimer’s Association recently reported that one in eight older Americans has Alzheimer’s disease.  This is an extremely important number because throughout the next few years, Wisconsin is going to undergo a major shift in the age of its population.

According to a study by the UW-Madison Applied Population Laboratory, the state’s population of citizens over 65 will nearly double in the next 30 years.  Moreover, Wisconsin citizens over the age of 85 will increase over 140%.  This is in stark contrast to the youth of our state, with only a 2% increase for those under 17.  The Alzheimer’s Association projects that Wisconsin will see a 30% increase in Alzheimer’s cases by 2025 with this growing population.

With such a large increase on the horizon, we need to begin to prepare today. These are our parents, neighbors, and friends.  By planning ahead, we can have the support structures in place to give them the care they deserve.

As Chairman of the Assembly Aging and Long Term Care Committee, I have been following this issue of utmost importance. Beginning this week I will chair a bi-partisan committee to study the use of legal interventions for persons with Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias.  The committee includes legislators from both parties as well as experts in the field.

The committee will investigate and address the most appropriate methods to handle individuals with Alzheimer’s or dementia when they begin exhibiting challenging behaviors.  For example, Alzheimer’s and dementia patients can sometimes exhibit aggressive behaviors towards others.  In these situations, caregivers may have no choice but to call the police to have the individual involuntary detained, removing them from their home environment.

In the best case scenario, nursing homes would be able to address these issues, but sometimes they cannot.  Following a recent Supreme Court decision, our goal will be to examine all the various legal methodologies regarding the various types of interventions to ensure that patients are treated fairly and given adequate legal protections, while balancing the need to ensure their safety and the safety of others.

Anytime we as a community start talking about taking an individual’s choice away, even if the person has Alzheimer’s, we need to be sensitive to both sides of the debate.  But I am confident that the members on the committee will be able to dig deep into the issues and come to a consensus on how to proceed.

All the committee work will be available online, including video of the hearings, and can be found at http://legis.wisconsin.gov/lc/committees/study/2012/ALZ/index.html