an In The Media Appearance

"Dementia Care Cost Is Projected to Double by 2040" - New York Times. 04/03/2013

In this story, Michael Hurd, lead author on the study under discussion, talks about the large and growing costs of dementia in the U.S. In addition to growing health care costs, Hurd says the costs for informal dementia care are probably much higher than for most other diseases. He also discusses the estimated 22% of Americans over age 71 with mild cognitive impairment that does not (yet) reach the threshold of dementia. When it comes to dementia, Hurd says his team’s study could not capture the full toll of dementia: “One thing we haven’t talked about, and it’s not in the paper, is the tremendous emotional cost,” he said. “Economists are coldhearted, but they’re not that coldhearted.”