Bridging racial, ethnic barriers to Alzheimer’s, dementia care

The Alzheimer’s Association 2021 Alzheimer’s Disease Facts and Figures report reveals that the Alzheimer’s burden across the country and here in Virginia continues to grow.

An estimated 6.2 million Americans age 65 and older have Alzheimer’s dementia, including 150,000 in Virginia. For the fifth consecutive year the cost of caring for individuals with Alzheimer’s is surpassing a quarter of a trillion dollars.

Here in Virginia the Medicaid costs of caring for people with Alzheimer’s is estimated at $1 billion. By 2025, these costs are projected to increase by close to 27%.

The report also shines light on significant barriers facing racially and ethnically diverse populations in accessing Alzheimer’s and dementia care.

According to the report, health and socioeconomic disparities and systemic racism contribute to increased Alzheimer’s and dementia risk in communities of color. Older Blacks and Hispanics are also disproportionately more likely to have Alzheimer’s and other dementias. In addition, both groups are more likely to have missed diagnoses than older whites.

Among the report’s findings:

Half of Black Americans (50%) report they have experienced health care discrimination; more than two in five Native Americans (42%) and one-third of Asian Americans (34%) and Hispanic Americans (33%) likewise report having experienced discrimination when seeking health care.

Among nonwhite caregivers, half or more say they have faced discrimination when navigating health care for their care recipient, with the top concern being that providers do not listen to what they are saying because of their race, color or ethnicity.

Nearly two-thirds of Black Americans (62%) believe medical research is biased against people of color, and only half of Black Americans (53%) trust a future cure for Alzheimer’s will be shared equally with people regardless of race, color or ethnicity.

Actions and solutions are needed to ensure that the already devastating burden of Alzheimer’s disease and other dementias on disproportionately affected racial and ethnic groups is not made worse by discrimination and health inequities in the current health care system.

The Alzheimer’s Association Southeastern Virginia Chapter is committed to bridging current gaps to ensure all Virginia residents have access to Alzheimer’s care and support services.

Since 2019, the Southeastern Virginia Chapter has held multiple Alzheimer’s Community Forums with hundreds of African American residents throughout Hampton Roads.

In collaboration with community partners such as Hampton University and Norfolk State University, the forums allow chapter leadership to participate in conversations on the unique impact of Alzheimer’s and how we can partner to address needs at the local level.

In addition, the chapter hosts educational programing that focuses on the health disparities related to Alzheimer’s and related dementia with Sentara Healthcare, the Hampton Roads Health Symposium and other organizational leaders in the African American community.

This spring, we will launch our second annual Purple Power Worship initiative in partnership with the Virginia Department of Health to bring this important conversation to the faith community throughout Virginia. Finally, we are beginning this work in other communities of color including the Latinx and Filipino local communities as well.

Findings from the Alzheimer’s Association surveys indicate that despite ongoing efforts to address health and health care disparities in Alzheimer’s and dementia care, there is still much work to do.

Amid broader calls for social justice, greater strides must be made to eliminate discrimination and other forms of bias to ensure all Americans have access to high quality dementia care and support services, as well as opportunities to participate in — and benefit from — Alzheimer’s research.

To learn more, go to alz.org/facts.

If you are dealing with a diagnosis of Alzheimer’s or other dementia, the Alzheimer’s Association is available 24/7 at 800-272-3900.

is a member of the board of the Southeastern Virginia Chapter of the Alzheimer’s Association and an assistant professor at Hampton University.