For Kentucky families living with Alzheimer’s disease, dementia, and other forms of cognitive decline, one of the most difficult parts of the journey is uncertainty.
Families may recognize that something is changing long before they receive clear answers. When a diagnosis finally comes, they may have already lost valuable time to plan for the future, consider treatment options or explore opportunities to participate in clinical research.
Today, advances in science are beginning to change that.
New blood-based tests can help physicians detect biological markers associated with Alzheimer’s disease using a simple blood draw. These tests do not replace a physician’s evaluation, nor are they currently intended as stand-alone screening tests for people without symptoms. But for patients experiencing cognitive changes, they offer physicians another tool to help determine who may need additional evaluation and care.
That progress could be particularly meaningful in Kentucky.
Access to dementia specialists and advanced screening services is not evenly distributed across our Commonwealth. Patients in rural communities may travel significant distances to see specialists or obtain testing such as PET scans. National data underscore the challenge: a Medicare study found that 85 percent of people living with dementia were initially diagnosed by providers who do not specialize in dementia, and an Alzheimer’s Association survey found that 71 percent of physicians practicing in rural areas reported insufficient access to dementia specialists. Expanding access to blood-based screening has the potential to make early screening more accessible in the primary-care settings where many Kentuckians already receive their healthcare.
The financial burden of dementia is significant as well. In 2026, health and long-term-care costs for Americans living with Alzheimer’s and other dementias are projected to reach $409 billion, with Medicare and Medicaid covering approximately $263 billion. Those costs are expected to increase substantially as the population ages.
Congress is now considering how Medicare policy should respond to these scientific developments.
The U.S. House’s Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Health took it up on September 15 as part of a broader Medicare policy hearing, and the very next day, the Ways and Means Committee unanimously voted to advance it. I applaud Kentucky’s own Congressman Brett Guthrie, who chairs the Energy and Commerce Committee, for making that hearing possible and urge him to ensure the legislation receives a floor vote this year.
Earlier and more accessible detection could give patients and their physicians better information as they make healthcare decisions. It could give families more time to prepare for caregiving and future needs. And for rural communities, new early screening tools may help reduce some of the geographic barriers that have long made specialty dementia care difficult to access.
Alzheimer’s remains one of the most challenging diseases facing American families. As science changes what is possible in detection and treatment, policymakers will have to decide how programs such as Medicare should adapt.
Representative Kim Moser chairs of the House Health Services Committee. A retired NICU and flight nurse, and former director of the Northern Kentucky Office of Drug Control, she can be reached by emailing kimberly.moser@kylegislature.gov or calling 1-800-372-7181.