Luxembourg, 21 September 2019 – Today is World Alzheimer’s Day, a day dedicated to raising awareness of Alzheimer’s and other types of dementia, as well as challenging the stigma that surrounds dementia. This year, Alzheimer Europe is proud to launch the European Alzheimer’s Alliance (EAA) for the 2019-2024 parliamentary term, on this important day. The EAA, which has been active in the European Parliament since 2007, is a non-exclusive, multinational and cross-party group that brings together Members of the European Parliament (MEPs) to support Alzheimer Europe and its members in making dementia a public health priority in Europe.

2019 election campaign

The work to engage with new and re-elected MEPs for the 2019-2024 term was largely done during our #DementiaPledge2019 campaign. The campaign, which was a collaborative effort between Alzheimer Europe and its member organisations, invited candidates at the May 2019 elections to pledge their support for our common cause - to make dementia a priority; to support dementia-inclusive initiatives at the national level; and to join the EAA, if elected. But the work does not end there. We continue to reach out to other MEPs, inviting them to join our European Parliament lunch debates, hosted by members of the EAA. These debates cover a wide variety of dementia-related topics. We also use these events, among other communication channels available to us, to ensure current and prospective EAA members understand the importance of dementia across a range of policy areas, as well as what they can do as parliamentarians to ensure it remains a priority.

Following the campaign and the elections, we are delighted to announce that the new EAA begins its terms with 91 members, hailing from 27 EU countries.

Chair and Vice-chairs

We are delighted that Sirpa Pietikäinen, MEP (Finland) has agreed to be the Chairperson of the EAA for the new term. To ensure that we have a balance of representation across the political spectrum, Alzheimer Europe has also written to EAA members from the EPP, S&D, Reform Europe, the EFA/Greens and GUE/NGL inviting them to become Vice-chairs of the group. Once confirmed, the names of the Vice-chairs will be made available on the Alzheimer Europe website.

Next steps for the EAA

Over the coming months, the European Commission will set out its legislative agenda and policy priorities for the next five years. Once details have been announced, Alzheimer Europe will identify the implications for dementia policy, working with members of the EAA to ensure that these policies reflect the priorities of people with dementia, their families and carers.

For further information

For more information about the European Alzheimer’s Alliance, including the names of the 91 MEPs who have joined so far, see the Alzheimer Europe website, here: https://www.alzheimer-europe.org/Policy-in-Practice2/European-Alzheimer-s-Alliance/Members

Contact

Jean Georges, Executive Director, Alzheimer Europe

Tel.: +352-29 79 70

Email jean.georges@alzheimer-europe.org

Website www.alzheimer-europe.org