Senior News Line: A new drug for Alzheimer’s disease

The Food and Drug Administration recently approved a new drug that is supposed to slow the progression of Alzheimer’s.

Earlier this year, the FDA gave conditional approval to Leqembi, pending more safety and efficacy trials. Now, with “accelerated approval,” the drug has full approval.

Another drug, Aduhelm, launched in June 2021, still only has conditional approval and is waiting results from more trials.

Both drugs work in a similar way, targeting the proteins in the brain. There are differences, however.

One difference between Leqembi and Aduhelm is the way it’s delivered. Aduhelm is given by spinal infusion and Leqembi is given intravenously every two weeks, although other means are being studied in trials that are still going on.

Another difference is in what the drugs do: Aduhelm targets the plaques in the brain, while Leqembi targets the proteins that create the plaques.

The other is the cost. Leqembi will likely cost $26,500 per year, although that can vary by patient weight and what schedule of maintenance dosing the patient is to get.

Medicare will likely cover the majority of patients if they have a supplemental drug plan. The rest will likely pay the 20% coinsurance not covered by Medicare.

Aduhelm had much different pricing when it first came out — $56,000 per year. Our Medicare Part B went up by $21.60 in 2022, up to $170 per month, likely due to the cost of Aduhelm, which Medicare initially expected to cost close to $3,000.

Some insurers said they wouldn’t cover the drug unless prices came down. The cost of the drug eventually did come down, to $28,200.

The caveat about Leqembi, however, is that the experts point to the very small degree of slowing of early Alzheimer’s in the patients in the trial. In many, the result could be quite subtle.

Still, some researchers say it does buy patients time and could delay the coming of the later stages of dementia.