NEW YORK, Oct. 06, 2017 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The Alzheimer’s Foundation of America (AFA) applauded the issuance of a new federal postage stamp to help raise awareness and funds for the 5 million Americans currently living with Alzheimer’s disease. AFA has long advocated for the issuance of the stamp as a way to raise Alzheimer’s awareness and support research efforts to find a cure for the disease, which is currently the sixth leading cause of death in America.
“AFA has been calling for this step for years, and it’s wonderful to see the Postal Service take action to benefit the millions of Americans affected by Alzheimer’s,” said Charles J. Fuschillo, Jr., AFA’s President & CEO. “Not only will this new stamp help raise awareness about Alzheimer’s, it will invest additional, desperately needed research funding that will help bring us one step closer to a cure for this terrible disease. We thank the United States Postal Service, as well as Representatives Maxine Waters and Elijah Cummings who worked to make this stamp a reality.”
The United States Postal Service (USPS) announced its intention to issue the new Alzheimer’s semipostal stamp in November, which is Alzheimer’s Awareness Month, and sell it for a period of two years.
Semipostal stamps, currently sold for 60-cents, are first-class mail postage stamps that are issued and sold by USPS above the regular first-class stamp rate to raise funds for designated causes. The net difference between the two rates is contributed to the specific cause. According to the USPS, funds raised through the Alzheimer’s semipostal stamp will be distributed to the US Department of Health and Human Services.
The Alzheimer’s stamp is the first of five different semipostal stamps USPS will be issuing over the next 10 years.
About Alzheimer’s Foundation of America (AFA):
The Alzheimer’s Foundation of America, based in New York, is a non-profit organization that unites more than 2,500 member organizations nationwide in the goal of providing optimal care and services to individuals confronting dementia, and to their caregivers and families. Its services include a national, toll-free helpline (866-232-8484) staffed by licensed social workers, educational materials, a free quarterly magazine for caregivers and “AFA Partners in Care” dementia care training for healthcare professionals. For more information about AFA, call 866-232-8484, visit www.alzfdn.org, follow us on Twitter, or connect with us on Facebook or LinkedIn.