Pat Summitt Foundation Releases New Findings on Alzheimer's Care Gap
November 9, 2026

KNOXVILLE - The Pat Summitt Foundation marked its 15th anniversary on November 5th with a luncheon in Knoxville, introducing a new five-year strategic plan and releasing a white paper examining the growing challenges facing people living with Alzheimer’s disease and their families.

The Foundation’s strategic plan establishes four priorities to guide its work through the next five years: clinical care and access, caregiver support, clinical education and workforce development, and growth and collaboration.

The plan comes as the number of Americans living with Alzheimer’s disease is expected to double by 2050, creating increasing demand for specialized care, diagnostic services and family support. The Foundation’s accompanying white paper, Alzheimer’s Disease and the Growing Concern: Rising Gaps in Diagnosis, Treatment and Access to Care, examines how advances in treatment and diagnosis are outpacing the healthcare system’s ability to deliver them equitably.

“Pat understood that caring about something wasn’t enough. You had to be willing to do something about it,” said Morgan Vance, executive director of the Pat Summitt Foundation. “As we look ahead to the next five years, our strategic plan gives us a clearer framework for how we can help address the challenges facing individuals and families affected by Alzheimer’s. We know meaningful progress takes collaboration and sustained investment, and we are committed to bringing people, expertise and resources together around practical solutions.”


New white paper examines growing gaps in Alzheimer’s care

Released in conjunction with the anniversary luncheon, the Foundation’s white paper examines the growing disconnect between scientific progress and access to care.

The report highlights several challenges facing patients and families, including shortages of dementia-care specialists, delays in diagnosis, geographic barriers to emerging therapies and the physical, emotional and financial impact of caregiving.

Among its findings, the report notes that more than 7.4 million Americans age 65 and older were living with Alzheimer’s disease in 2025. More than 12 million Americans provide unpaid care for individuals with Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias, representing an estimated economic value of $446 billion in 2025. The report also underscores the challenges facing rural communities, where limited access to neurologists and memory-care specialists can delay diagnosis and reduce access to treatment and support services.

As new therapies and diagnostic tools continue to advance, the Foundation’s report calls for coordinated efforts to strengthen the dementia-care workforce, improve early detection, expand access to resources and better support caregivers.

The full white paper, Alzheimer’s Disease and the Growing Concern: Rising Gaps in Diagnosis, Treatment and Access to Care, is available at https://patsummitt.org/impact/understanding-the-gaps/.

 
A roadmap for the Foundation’s next chapter

The foundation also released a strategic plan reflecting a year of listening and evaluation, including conversations with donors, partners, stakeholders and individuals with expertise in Alzheimer’s and dementia care.

Its four priorities are designed to address interconnected challenges across the continuum of care:

• Clinical care and access: Explore opportunities to expand access to specialized dementia care, including the Pat Summitt Clinic model, and identify communities where additional resources are needed.
• Caregiver support: Build on the Foundation’s work to provide families with practical resources and support as they navigate the complexities of dementia care.
• Clinical education and workforce development: Support efforts to strengthen the healthcare workforce and improve the ability of providers to recognize, diagnose and care for individuals living with Alzheimer’s disease.
• Growth and collaboration: Build on existing relationships and develop new partnerships to expand the Foundation’s reach and impact.

The plan recognizes that improving Alzheimer’s care requires more than research and treatment advances alone. Timely diagnosis, access to specialists, coordinated care and support for caregivers are all essential to improving outcomes for patients and families.

“A breakthrough matters only when people have a meaningful opportunity to benefit from it,” Vance said. “Our goal is to make investments that meet real needs, strengthen care and support, and contribute to progress that reaches beyond any single community.”


Building on Pat Summitt’s legacy

Founded by legendary University of Tennessee women’s basketball coach Pat Summitt and her son, Tyler, the Pat Summitt Foundation has spent 15 years advancing research, supporting patients and caregivers, and educating the public about Alzheimer’s disease and other forms of dementia.

The Foundation has invested more than $3 million in the University of Tennessee Medical Center, helping establish the Pat Summitt Clinic in 2017. The multidisciplinary clinic provides diagnosis and treatment for Alzheimer’s disease and other neurodegenerative diseases and has cared for more than 33,000 patients from 29 states.

In 2024, the Foundation launched Pat’s Gameplan, a free caregiver resource designed to help families navigate topics including legal and financial planning, safety, nutrition and more. The Foundation has committed more than $1 million to expanding access to these resources, and the website has received more than 1 million visits in less than two years.

Since 2019, the Foundation has also invested another $2 million in organizations providing support to patients and caregivers throughout the Southeast, with an estimated reach of more than 85,000 individuals.

As it enters its next chapter, the Foundation remains committed to carrying Pat Summitt’s legacy forward by helping individuals and families affected by Alzheimer’s disease access the care, resources and support they need.

Read the white paper

Alzheimer’s Disease and the Growing Concern: Rising Gaps in Diagnosis, Treatment and Access to Care is available at https://patsummitt.org/impact/understanding-the-gaps/.