Shares of Biogen slid Wednesday, a day after federal regulators slapped coverage limitations on the drugmaker’s new Alzheimer’s disease treatment.
The
That’s an important caveat because Medicare is expected to cover most of the patients who opt for Aduhelm, and the drug can cost as much as
Biogen had cut that cost down from more than
The initial Medicare coverage decision will significantly limit access to Aduhelm, said
But he said Wednesday he now assumes less than
Medicare’s national coverage determination will become final by
The
Aduhelm clears brain plaque thought to play a role in Alzheimer’s disease, and regulators made their call based on research showing the drug seemed likely to benefit patients. But they’ve asked for another study.
Biogen said last month that it would submit final plans for that study to the
Researchers will aim to enroll about 1,300 people with early-stage Alzheimer’s and expect to complete the research about four years after the study begins.
Aduhelm has been hailed as a promising treatment by some researchers because it has the potential to slow the fatal Alzheimer’s. No drugs on the market currently do that.
But concerns about the cost and effectiveness have slowed the drug's debut.
Biogen CEO
Biogen said in June, shortly after the FDA approval, that about 900 sites in the
Shares of
The stock price had soared past
Follow
Copyright 2022 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission., source