(a)  Any postsecondary higher educational institution with a medical center may establish diagnostic and treatment centers for Alzheimer’s disease subject to the department’s grants review process.

(b)  The department shall administer grants to postsecondary higher educational institutions that establish diagnostic and treatment centers pursuant to subdivision (a).

(c)  Funds appropriated for the purposes of this article by the Statutes of 1987 shall first be used to maintain and enhance, as determined by the department, existing centers and to prevent program cutbacks under subdivision (b).

(d)  Alzheimer’s disease grants for the purpose of establishing a diagnostic and treatment center shall be used only for the purposes of this article, including, but not limited to, all of the following:

(1)  Salary and benefits for faculty, residents, fellows, and staff of the diagnostic and treatment center.

(2)  Costs of supplies and equipment.

(3)  Research grants for faculty research to discover the cause of, and a cure for, Alzheimer’s disease.

(4)  Research grants for students, residents, and fellows.

(5)  General administrative costs of up to 8 percent of the total grant.

(e)  The department shall establish criteria for requests for Alzheimer’s disease diagnostic and treatment center grants and Alzheimer’s disease research grants, and for program evaluation.

(f)  No grant awarded pursuant to this article shall be approved for any amount that exceeds 25 percent of the total amount of funds appropriated for this purpose in the 1987–88 Regular Session of the Legislature.

(g)  The department shall administer a grant program for the purpose of research into the causes, treatment, cure, strategies for coping with, prevention, incidence, and prevalence of Alzheimer’s disease and related disorders. Priority shall be given to grant applications for feasibility studies, startup grants, and matching funds for federal and privately funded research grants. Consideration shall be given to proposals that link service delivery and collect data relative to patient care and the delivery of social services. This research may include, but is not limited to, examinations and recommendations for the improvement of the family, community-based and health care support systems available to Alzheimer’s disease victims, and their caregivers.

(h)  Upon request, the department shall make available to the Legislature information regarding the progress of the grant programs established pursuant to this article.

(i)  The department shall reduce any grant pursuant to this article by the amount of any federal funds available for the same purposes to the same grantee.

(Added by Stats. 1995, Ch. 415, Sec. 8. Effective January 1, 1996.)