Madam President, thank you very much.  Every 68 seconds—a  little more than 1 minute—someone in America develops Alzheimer's. It is a devastating and irreversible brain disease that slowly destroys an individual's cognitive functioning, including memory and thought. Back home in Kansas, a Kansas City physician, Dr. Richard Padula, and his wife Marta had been married for 51 years when he was diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease in 2006. It is difficult to imagine the anguish Dick and Marta and their family and their friends experienced as he deteriorated from a leading heart surgeon into someone unable to comprehend a newspaper article. Unfortunately, these stories have become very common.

Alzheimer's currently affects more than 5.2 million people in the United States and more than 35.6 million people worldwide. As our population ages, the number of people diagnosed with Alzheimer's after the age of 65 will double every five years, while the number of individuals 85 years and older with this disease will triple by 2050. Already, Alzheimer's is the sixth leading cause of death in the United States, and there is currently no cure, no diagnostic test, and no treatment for this terrible, terrible disease. As a nation, we should, we must, we ought to commit to defeating one of the greatest threats to the health of Americans and to the financial well-being of our nation.

In 1962, President Kennedy called our nation to action to reach the Moon by the end of the decade, and Americans rallied around that cry. Similarly, we need to commit ourselves to a goal just as ambitious but perhaps even more imperative. We must strive to achieve not only an effective treatment but a cure for Alzheimer's over the next decade. President Kennedy words, he said, “Because that goal will serve to organize and measure the best of our energies and skills, because that challenge is one that we are willing to accept, one we are unwilling to postpone, and one which we intend to win.” Well I would like those words to be spoken about the fight against Alzheimer's.

As the baby boomer generation ages and Alzheimer's disease becomes more prevalent, the need to confront the pending health care crisis has become even more urgent. The financial costs alone cannot be ignored. What it costs America's health care system, what it costs Americans, what it costs the taxpayers, we need to address these issues. Caring for those with Alzheimer's and other dementias is expected to reach an expense of $203 billion this year—$203  billion this year—with $142 billion covered by the federal government through Medicare and Medicaid.

A recent study by the RAND Corporation stated that the cost of dementia care is projected to double over the next 30 years, surpassing health care expenses for both heart disease and cancer. Without a way to prevent, cure or effectively treat Alzheimer's, it will be difficult, if not impossible, to rein in our Nation's health care costs. Alzheimer's has become a disease that defines a generation, but if we focus and prioritize our research capacity, it does not need to continue to be an inevitable part of aging.

It is time to truly commit to defeating this disease in the next decade, a goal no more ambitious than President Kennedy set forth for the Apollo space program. For every $27 that Medicare and Medicaid spend caring for an individual with Alzheimer's, the Federal Government only spends $1 on Alzheimer's research—$27 to care for the disease; $1 to try to cure or prevent the disease.

Yet we know that research suggests that more progress could be made if given more support. One study found that a breakthrough against Alzheimer's that delays the onset of the disease by just 5 years would mean an annual savings of $362 billion by 2050. A sustained Federal commitment to research for Alzheimer's will lower the cost and improve the health outcomes for people living with the disease today and in the future.

I am the ranking Republican on the Senate Appropriations subcommittee that funds the National Institutes of Health. NIH is the focal point of our Nation's medical research infrastructure, and I am committed to working with my colleagues to prioritize funding for Alzheimer's research. This year our subcommittee increased funding for the National Institute on Aging—the lead institute for Alzheimer's research at NIH—by  $84 million and supported the initial year of funding for the new Presidential initiative to map the human brain. Both projects will increase our understanding of the underlying causes of Alzheimer's, unlock the mysteries of the brain, and bring us closer—closer—to an effective treatment and, one day, closer to a cure.

Alzheimer's is a defining challenge of my generation, and we should commit to a national goal to defeat this devastating disease. We can do that by supporting critical research carried out by scientists and researchers across our Nation and supported by the National Institutes of Health.

In my view this is an area in which we all can come together. You can be the most compassionate, caring person—and we ought to spend money to care for people—you can be the most cautious about spending dollars and the investment and what the return is for every dollar we spend, and because we could save on health care costs, you ought to be supportive of this funding.

The health and financial future of our Nation, in my view, is at stake, and the United States cannot, should not, must not ignore this threat. Together, we can make a sustained commitment to Alzheimer's research that will benefit our Nation and bring hope to families such as the Padulas, as well as to every American. It is a challenge. It is a challenge we ought to accept. The moment for us to act is now, and the end result is hope for the future.

WASHINGTON, D.C. — U.S. Senator Jerry Moran (R-Kan.) joined U.S. Senator John Cornyn (R-Texas) to introduce the Honoring the Fort Hood Heroes Act, legislation to honor and support the victims of the Nov. 5, 2009, Fort Hood shooting. The bill will make certain the victims of the Fort Hood attack receive the same benefits as their deployed counterparts who are wounded or killed either through enemy action abroad or a terrorist attack. Sens. Moran and Cornyn were joined in introducing the bill by U.S. Sens. Susan Collins (R-Maine) and Ted Cruz (R-Texas).

"For nearly four years, the victims of the tragic Fort Hood shooting have failed to receive the equal honor and respect they deserve because the attack took place on U.S. soil rather than in a designated combat zone such as Afghanistan,” Sen. Moran said. “I am proud to introduce legislation to correct this injustice and provide much-deserved recognition and benefits to the Fort Hood shooting victims."

"The wheels of justice have turned too slowly for the victims of the terrorist attack at Fort Hood four years ago. We must direct our attention to the people who deserve it, and that is the victims and their families. As a nation, we have a sacred obligation to take care of them,” Sen. Cornyn said.

In addition to current benefits inequity the Fort Hood victims, the Federal Government set a historic precedent when it awarded military victims of the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks with the Purple Heart medal, and civilian victims with the Secretary of Defense Medal for the Defense of Freedom. Sen. Moran’s legislation states that the same precedent should be followed for the Fort Hood victims.

Under the Honoring the Fort Hood Heroes Act, victims and families of victims would be made eligible for certain benefits that have been withheld from them, including:

• Combat-related special compensation;
• Maximum coverage under Servicemembers’ Group Life Insurance;
• Tax breaks after death in combat zone or terrorist attack;
• Special pay for subjection to hostile fire or imminent danger;
• Combat-related injury rehabilitation pay; and
• Meals at military treatment facilities. 

A companion version of the Honoring the Fort Hood Heroes Act has been introduced in the House of Representatives by U.S. Reps. John R. Carter (R-Texas 31) and Roger Williams (R-Texas 25). Please find a full bill summary below:

Bill Summary: 

• Declarations of Policy. The bill declares that: (1) the attack constituted an act of terrorism, not merely workplace violence; (2) the U.S. Government has a fundamental duty to our troops to safeguard them against avoidable harm, and the Fort Hood attack could and should have been prevented; (3) the perpetrator, Nidal Hasan, had become radicalized while serving in the U.S. Army and was principally motivated to attack by an ideology of violent Islamist extremism; and (4) Hasan proved himself to be not just a terrorist, but also a traitor and an enemy of the U.S.
• Military Awards. The bill would require the Secretary of the Army to award Purple Hearts to those Soldiers who were killed/wounded in the attack, and require the Secretary of Defense to award the Secretary of Defense Medal for the Defense of Freedom (Purple Heart equivalent for civilians) to civilians who were killed/wounded.
• Certain Benefits. The bill would provide certain benefits to the victims of the attack who were killed/wounded and their families (retroactively to the date of the attack), by deeming the killing/wounding to have occurred:
• For Soldiers, in a combat zone and at the hands of an enemy of the United States.
• For civilian DoD employees, by hostile action while serving alongside the Armed Forces during a contingency operation, and in a terrorist attack. 

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WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senators Pat Roberts (R-Kan.) and Jerry Moran (R-Kan.) today called on U.S. Secretary of the Department of Agriculture (USDA) Tom Vilsack to extend emergency grazing of Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) lands to help livestock producers hit hard by lingering and intensifying drought.

The following is the text of the letter sent today to Secretary Vilsack:

Dear Mr. Secretary:                            

Thank you for your continued commitment to provide every USDA resource to help producers and communities deal with the devastating effects of ongoing drought. While many parts of the country and Kansas have received much-needed rainfall, areas of Western Kansas continue to suffer from multiple years of severe drought.

On July 11, you received a letter asking for the swift and unrestricted release of Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) acres for emergency haying and grazing. On July 16, the Kansas State Farm Service Agency (FSA) Committee, FSA Executive Director Adrian Polansky, and the State Technical Committee released CRP acreage for haying and grazing.

Due to the lingering, and in some cases intensifying, drought, we ask you again to swiftly authorize actions to allow livestock producers to effectively respond to drought conditions. In order to assist producers, last year on August 29, 2012, you announced that USDA would permit farmers and ranchers in drought stricken states that have been approved for emergency grazing to extend grazing on CRP land through November 30, 2012, without incurring an additional CRP rental payment reduction.

These actions a year ago significantly helped livestock producers and we ask that you authorize a similar extension of emergency grazing through November 30, 2013.  Extending producers’ ability to utilize CRP acreage will allow producers to better prepare for this winter’s forage needs.

USDA agencies and personnel have forged a partnership with farmers, ranchers, local communities and state government agencies to utilize every available resource and program authority for survival and sustainability until weather patterns improve.  Without adequate forage, the Kansas cattle industry, which generates more than $7 billion in cash receipts annually, will be negatively impacted as producers will be forced to sell their cattle. Irreplaceable genetics and traits bred for generations could be lost in the open market, jeopardizing our state’s leading industry.

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