Much remains to be elucidated about causes of Parkinson’s disease, a progressive neurodegenerative condition that affects at least 1,000,000 people in the United States. For example, little detailed information is available about the patterns and trends of incidence and prevalence across populations diverse with regard to race/ethnicity, socioeconomic status and history of exposure to occupational and environmental toxins.
Recognizing that development of a statewide disease registry would facilitate research into PD etiology, The California Parkinson’s Disease Registry Act (CPDRA) [AB 2248, Frommer, Chapter 945] was enacted in late 2004. This legislation mandates the State Department of Health Services (CDHS) Director to conduct a program of epidemiological assessments of the incidence of PD (including monitoring associated with suspected chemical agents encountered by the public in general and occupational environments) and create a database of persons with this disease for research purposes.