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 Summary:

• Medicare is now covering Leqembi, the only Alzheimer's treatment on the market that slowed cognitive decline in early stages of the disease in a clinical trial.
• Although Medicare will pick up a majority of the bill, patients could still pay more than $5,000 in out-of-pocket costs.
• Those out-of-pocket costs could prove unaffordable for many people, particularly Black and Hispanic patients who are at higher risk of Alzheimer's disease.
•  Medicare has agreed to pay for the Alzheimer's treatment Leqembi, a major turning point for patients who are diagnosed with the early stages of the disease. 

Details:

 Leqembi is the only drug on the market right now that has demonstrated the ability to slow the progression of early stages of Alzheimer's disease in a clinical trial. The monoclonal antibody, administered twice monthly through intravenous means, slowed cognitive decline by 27% over 18 months in the trial.

Leqembi is made by Japanese drugmaker Eisai and its partner Biogen, which is based in Cambridge, Massachusetts.

Medicare's decision to cover Leqembi, which came moments after the Food and Drug Administration fully approved the drug Thursday, promises to make the treatment more accessible to patients.

Medicare coverage is crucial for most patients to have any hope of being able to afford Leqembi. Eisai has priced Leqembi at $26,500 per year before insurance coverage, which is extraordinarily expensive for Medicare patients, who have a median income of about $30,000.

Medicare is picking up the majority of the bill, though many patients will still face several thousand dollars in out-of-pocket costs.

Patients with traditional Medicare will pay 20% of the bill for Leqembi, according to the federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. That means these patients could see an annual bill of more than $5,000, according to an estimate from KFF, a nonprofit group that researches health-care issues.

People with Medicare Advantage plans also typically pay 20% for drugs such as Leqembi, up to their out-of-pocket maximum, which was about $5,000 on average for in-network services, according to KFF.

Patients with supplemental insurance such as Medigap or Medicaid might pay less, according to KFF.

People of modest means might not be able to afford the out-of-pocket costs for Leqembi even with Medicare coverage, said Tricia Neuman, an expert on Medicare at KFF.

 TO READ THE WHOLE ARTICLE, click> Medicare will pay for Alzheimer's drug Leqembi. What patients and doctors should know (msn.com)
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