The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) has released its roadmap for combatting Alzheimer’s and other forms of dementia in the coming years as the number of people living with cognitive changes continues to grow.
The latest national plan to address Alzheimer’s and other dementias outlines six goals for reducing cognitive illnesses, including:
- Preventing and treating Alzheimer’s and related dementias by 2025
- Enhancing quality of care; expanding support for people living with dementia and their families
- Enhancing public awareness and engagement
- Improving data collection
- Accelerating actions to support healthy aging and reducing dementia risk factors
A dementia diagnosis typically comes with staggering costs for older adults and their families, with caregiving for a person with dementia in the last five years of life costing $287,000 based on figures reported in 2020. People with dementia are also hospitalized two to three times as often as those without a diagnosis.
With nearly seven out of ten residents in assisted living settings having some form of cognitive impairment, these diseases will place a major strain on public and private healthcare providers, according to the report.
Pharmaceutical drug Lecanemab was approved for the treatment of Alzheimer’s disease by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in 2022, following other drugs being approved in the previous year. The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) announced in 2022 that it would cover monoclonal antibody treatments for Alzheimer’s disease, representing a significant step forward in accessing dementia care.
Looking ahead, more research is still needed to identify and test other pharmaceuticals to treat dementia, as well as changes in the healthcare system to ensure people are diagnosed early in the disease process.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) held the inaugural National Summit on Dementia Risk Reduction, underscoring the urgent need for progress in dementia research and treatments.
