Committee hears bill to create Nevada Memory Network and dementia care specialists

A proposal to establish a dementia‑care specialist program and a statewide Nevada Memory Network drew bipartisan support and multiple endorsements at an Assembly Human and Health Services Committee hearing on March 17.

Assembly Bill 337, presented by Assemblymember Yui Nguyen (Assembly District 8) on behalf of the Legislative Commission on Senior Citizens, Veterans, and Adults with Special Needs, would create memory assessment hubs, expand provider training and dementia navigation services, and formalize a system to improve early diagnosis and ongoing care coordination for people living with Alzheimer’s disease and other dementias.

"We have a moral and ethical obligation to support and care for the older people with dementia," Nguyen said in opening remarks. Benjamin Shalinor of the Alzheimer’s Association described the Nevada Memory Network as modeled on a Georgia program that connects primary‑care providers, memory clinics and community partners to improve diagnosis and linkage to care.

Supporters said Nevada faces a rapidly growing population of residents affected by dementia and shortages of diagnostic capacity and trained providers. Shalinor cited national and state figures during testimony: an estimated 6.9 million people are living with dementia in the United States, and around 55,000 Nevadans had Alzheimer’s disease or other dementias in 2020. He and other witnesses said roughly half of those Nevadans lack a formal diagnosis and that caregivers provide large amounts of unpaid care.

The bill would fund dementia care navigators and establish memory assessment clinics that use standardized cognitive screening tools such as the Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA) and coordinate referrals to specialists when indicated. The measure also proposes a dementia care specialist program modeled after Wisconsin’s program, which places trained, social‑service‑oriented specialists in aging and disability resource centers to support families and coordinate care.

"There's been stated about 70 percent of all caregivers have mentioned coordinating care is stressful, and more than half said navigating the healthcare is difficult," Shalinor told the committee. Supporters including AARP Nevada, the University of Nevada (Reno and Las Vegas programs), Cleveland Clinic Nevada, the Alzheimer’s Association, and the Aging and Disability Services Division of the Department of Health and Human Services urged passage.

Several witnesses emphasized culturally competent outreach and services for rural areas and tribal communities. Matilda Miller, Government Relations Director for Native Voters Alliance Nevada, said telemedicine and provider training in the bill would help tribal and rural elders obtain diagnosis and care.

Committee questions focused on implementation details including who would serve as dementia care specialists. Cheyenne Pasquale of ADSD explained the program anticipates hiring laypeople with social‑service backgrounds ("preferably have a master's degree or equivalent experience") rather than licensed nurses, to provide navigation and community‑based assistance.

Committee members also discussed which medical centers would be initial partners. Testimony named the University of Nevada, Reno School of Medicine and the University of Nevada, Las Vegas as early partners because of existing programs; sponsors said they would consider permissive language to allow expansion to other institutions as the network grows.

No vote was taken during the hearing. Sponsors said they would continue to work with stakeholders to refine language before the bill advances.