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Bill would direct DHHS to fold Alzheimer's information into existing public‑health outreach
Summary
SB 454 would require the Department of Health and Human Services to add Alzheimer's and dementia information into existing public outreach and provider materials; advocates cited 26,500 Granite Staters living with the disease and argued early diagnosis can lower long‑term costs and improve outcomes.
Representatives of the Alzheimer's Association and the Department of Health and Human Services told the House committee that SB 454 would sustain and expand a prior brain‑health awareness campaign by integrating Alzheimer's and dementia information into existing public‑health outreach and provider materials.
"There are over 26,500 individuals living with Alzheimer's or dementia in the state of New Hampshire," Jenny Horgan, state government relations director for the Alzheimer's Association, said. She told the committee the earlier "Know Early Live Better" campaign (Jan–June 2025) produced measurable knowledge gains and more than 16.6 million impressions, and that early diagnosis can improve access to treatments that work best in early stages.
Wendy Altman, bureau chief for Adult and Aging Services at DHHS, said the department already houses campaign materials on its web presence and would leverage existing outreach channels and partnerships to implement the bill if enacted; DHHS emphasized the measure would not change eligibility for Medicaid or create new benefits but could strengthen the state's standing when applying for federal grants.
A person with lived experience, Leah Farley of Hopkinton, described delays in diagnosis that took 3½ years and urged passage to spare other families prolonged confusion and missed treatment opportunities.
Committee members asked for follow‑up budgetary and impact estimates; witnesses said some analyses attribute roughly $63,000 in lifetime savings per earlier diagnosis (split across Medicare, Medicaid and other savings) and offered to provide state‑level aggregate savings if requested.
