March 14, 2023 – The Veterans Health Administration will cover the price of drug treatment with Leqembi, manufacturer Eisai said.
Veterans within the early stages of Alzheimer's disease who meet VHA criteria are eligible. Eisai says a press release. The company is developing the drug along with Biogen.
The VHAs website states that veterans have to be senior residents, sign a consent form, have had a magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scan inside the past 12 months, and have results from a PET scan or lumbar puncture which are consistent with the disease.
The VHA is the biggest health care system within the country, serving 9 million veterans annually. CNBC reported. Around 168,000 veterans developed Alzheimer's disease last 12 months, the federal government said.
Medicare has refused to cover the drug, which costs $26,500 a 12 months. The FDA approved Leqembi under fast-track approval in January.
According to CNBC, Medicare has agreed to broader coverage of Leqembi once the drug receives full FDA approval. Eisai and Biogen say they expect a call in July.
The drug slowed cognitive decline in individuals with early-stage Alzheimer's by 27% in a late-stage study, CNBC reported. It is given twice a month as an intravenous infusion and targets plaques within the brain related to the disease. It carries the chance of brain swelling and bleeding.
“This is an important step toward medically necessary and beneficial treatments for people with mild cognitive impairment,” said Joanne Pike, CEO and president of the Alzheimer's Association. said in a press release“For someone living in the early stages of Alzheimer's disease, every day counts when it comes to slowing the progression of the disease.”