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Advocates push Nevada to create dementia services coordinator and expand early diagnosis access
Summary
Alzheimer’s advocates urged Nevada lawmakers to fund a dementia services coordinator to move the state plan from paper to practice, and to expand access to early diagnostics and treatment — citing growing case counts, caregiver burdens and federal bills that could widen diagnostic access.
Advocates for people with Alzheimer’s told the legislative committee that Nevada needs a central coordinator to ensure the state Alzheimer’s plan is implemented and families get consistent help.
"A dementia services coordinator would focus on aligning agencies, tracking progress, and ensuring that the goals identified in the state plan translate into measurable action," Tori Roberg, director of government affairs for the Alzheimer’s Association’s Southwest and Mountain territory, told the committee. Roberg said 32 states already have similar coordinator positions and urged Nevada to join them.
Roberg presented national and state data to underline the urgency: she cited a 2020 estimate of 54,900 Nevadans living with Alzheimer’s and said roughly 10.6% of Nevadans ages 65 and older have the disease. She also told lawmakers that in 2024 about 87,000 family caregivers in Nevada provided an estimated 146 million hours of unpaid care valued at roughly $3 billion — evidence, she said, that family caregivers shoulder large costs and responsibilities.
Roberg highlighted two federal priorities the Alzheimer’s Association is pressing Congress to fund: the ASAP Act, which would expand access to a newly FDA‑approved blood biomarker test to help diagnose Alzheimer’s earlier, and the ADAPT Act, which aims to train primary care clinicians and other front‑line staff to recognize and manage cognitive impairment. “Let’s get people diagnosed early. Let’s get them diagnosed accurately,” she said.
Committee members asked about mortality and prevalence trends. Roberg said increases are driven primarily by population aging and improved detection: "Age is the number one risk factor and we are living longer," she told the panel.
Why it matters: Roberg and other presenters stressed early diagnosis allows patients to access treatments that can slow progression, connect families to services, and potentially reduce expensive long‑term care needs. Roberg said better diagnosis and care coordination could reduce Medicaid long‑term care spending, which she cited as roughly $300 million in 2025 for Nevada long‑term care costs.
Next steps: Roberg urged lawmakers to consider a funded dementia services coordinator post, support systems to expand early diagnosis and clinician training, and align state programs so the state plan becomes a sustained implementation effort rather than a static document. The committee heard similar recommendations in public comment from Nevada residents and advocates and indicated it will hold the topic for future discussion.
