Sen. Chris Murphy (D-CT) has teamed with Sen. Shelley Moore Capito (R-WV) to introduce the National Plan to End Parkinson”™s Act, which seeks to use federal resources to address the neurological disease Parkinson”™s.
The bill seeks to create an advisory council comprising members of every federal agency that supports research, care, and services for Parkinson”™s, plus caregivers, patients, and other non-federal experts. The council will ensure coordination among all federal entities with responsibility for managing, treating, and curing Parkinson”™s disease. It will also evaluate all current federal programs related to Parkinson’s, write a national plan to prevent and cure Parkinson”™s and to reduce the financial impact of the disease on patients and the federal government. The council will report annually to Congress on progress toward the plan”™s goals.
Parkinson”™s disease is the second most common ”“ and fastest-growing ”“ neurological disease globally with at least 60,000 new cases diagnosed every year. A companion bill has been introduced in the U.S. House of Representatives by Reps. Paul Tonko (D-NY) and Gus Bilirakis (R-FL).
“Anyone living with Parkinson”™s or caring for a loved one impacted by the disease knows just how devastating a diagnosis it can be,” said Murphy. “The National Plan to End Parkinson”™s Act would create a comprehensive strategy to get us closer to a cure while also ensuring we do everything we can to help patients and their families access higher quality, more affordable care.”
