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Senate committee gives unanimous approval to House Bill 479, a dementia-training program for APS workers
Summary
The Kentucky Senate Families and Children Committee voted 6-0 to give House Bill 479 a favorable recommendation. The bill would provide free dementia-specific training aimed at helping Department of Community Based Services and adult protective services recognize and respond to the needs of people living with dementia and their caregivers.
The Kentucky Senate Families and Children Committee voted 6-0 to give House Bill 479 a favorable recommendation, moving the measure toward a full Senate vote.
House Bill 479, introduced in the committee by State Representative Derrick Lewis, would provide dementia-specific training at no cost to the state for staff in the Department of Community Based Services, with a primary focus on supplementing the work of adult protective services (APS) workers.
Representative Derrick Lewis told the committee the bill is “very straightforward” and free to the state. Mackenzie Wallace, director of public policy for the Alzheimer’s Association, described the proposal as personal and practical, saying the training would help APS staff recognize subtle changes in memory, behavior and processing among people with dementia and better direct families to services.
Wallace said the Alzheimer’s Association provided county-level figures using Medicare and other data and noted that, statewide, about 10.4% of people age 65 and older have some form of dementia according to the materials supplied to the committee. “Dementia doesn’t discriminate between political parties,” Wallace said, “it’s not geographically located.”
Senators who spoke in support emphasized the bill’s value for families and caregivers. Senator Deneen, who said she recently lost her father after months of cognitive decline, told the committee the training was “very important” because family members and caregivers often struggle to obtain diagnoses and services.
The committee recorded a motion from Senator Herron to advance the bill; the motion received a second. A roll call recorded “Aye” votes and the clerk gave a final tally of 6-0 in favor. The committee’s favorable recommendation sends House Bill 479 to the full Senate for further consideration.
The bill text and any implementing details about curriculum, delivery method or timelines were not specified during the committee hearing. Wallace said the Alzheimer’s Association supports broader public-health approaches to Alzheimer’s and related dementias, including prevention measures tied to exercise, nutrition and sleep, and noted the state is pursuing a federal grant addressing those issues.
