Letters to the Editor: October 11, 2019

Letter to the editor:

An estimated 200,000 Americans under the age of 65 are living with Alzheimer’s disease. Both of my parents suffered from Alzheimer’s but were older than 65 when they were first diagnosed. Seeing their condition deteriorate over the years before their deaths is what drove me to become involved as an Alzheimer’s Ambassador for my Congressman, Barry Loudermilk.

I attended the annual (Advocacy) Forum along with 1,000-plus other Alzheimer’s advocates. I learned that I was not alone in my struggle with Alzheimer’s. As painful as losing both of my parents to Alzheimer’s was, the stories I heard at the forum described experiences that were just as devastating, if not more.

I met people with loved ones who were younger than 65 when they got Alzheimer’s. I will always feel that we lost so much when my parents became ill. I cannot imagine if it had occurred at such a young age.

Alzheimer’s is a progressive and fatal disease. Its destructive nature affects not only those who are afflicted, but also their loved ones and caregivers. I know from experience the enormous burden that Alzheimer’s has on Georgia families and the economy. The disease will cost the United States more than $290 billion in 2019. Today there are approximately 150,000 people in Georgia living with Alzheimer’s. Every 65 seconds a new person develops the disease in America. By the time you finish reading this, Alzheimer’s will have another victim.

People with Younger-Onset Alzheimer’s are not eligible for the support and service programs available to older Americans. The Younger-Onset Alzheimer’s Disease Act of 2019 (H.R. 1903) seeks to rectify this injustice. Through the Younger-Onset Alzheimer’s Disease Act of 2019, individuals under the age of 60 with Alzheimer’s will have access to a range of home and community-based services, such as Meals On Wheels and other nutrition programs, in-home services, transportation, legal services, as well as other initiatives to enhance their quality of life.

I am asking Congress to pass the Younger-Onset Alzheimer’s Act of 2019, which would grant individuals living with Younger-Onset Alzheimer’s the same services and programs available to older Americans with Alzheimer’s under the Older Americans Act (OAA). Please join me in asking Rep. Barry Loudermilk to cosponsor the Younger-Onset Alzheimer’s Act of 2019.

To learn more about this disease and how you can join the fight to end

Alzheimer’s, visit alzimpact.org.

Debbie Levin, Atlanta

Letter to the editor:

All crossings into and out of Gaza, Judea and Samaria will be closed beginning at midnight on Sept. 27 until midnight Oct. 2. The purpose of the closure is to thwart Palestinian terrorists who might attack during the Rosh Hashanah holiday.

Remember the Passover massacre suicide bombing (30 dead and 140 injured) and the Yom Kippur War? Muslim residents of Gaza, Judea, and Samaria have no reason to fear terror attacks on Ramadan or Eid (though there could be a false flag attack by their own).

The attitudes toward religious holidays held by some Arabs compared with the religious respect that has always characterized Israelis offers an insight into why direct negotiations without preconditions, leading to peace, are not something we can realistically anticipate in the foreseeable future.

Julia Lutch, Davis, Calif.