News
What's happening in Alzheimer's care, research funding, and treatment — summarized simply, each item linked to the original reporting.
Free to read, “May need a subscription” and “Archived copy”: what they mean
Whether an article is free to read is a guess, not a test of your access. Each item is one of three:
- No label: free to read (303 of 347). The publisher’s page marks it free, or the outlet publishes free to read: Medical Xpress, ScienceDaily, NIH (incl. NIA and PMC), Alzheimer's Association, Alzheimer's News Today, NPR, Alzheimer's Disease International, or a .gov site.
- May need a subscription (11 of 347). The publisher’s own page marks the article as not free to read, or — when the page says nothing — the outlet sells subscriptions: The New York Times, STAT, Scientific American, The Washington Post, The Wall Street Journal, Financial Times, The Economist, Bloomberg, The Atlantic, The New Yorker, Wired, Los Angeles Times, The Boston Globe, The Times, The Telegraph, New Scientist, Endpoints News, Science. Each badge says which.
- “Free to read? Not known” (33 of 347). The outlet is on neither list and its page said nothing. We do not call these paywalled.
Archived copy links go to a copy the Internet Archive (web.archive.org) saved, dated the day it was saved. We show one only where the Internet Archive reported a working saved copy when we checked; an archived copy of a subscription article sometimes shows only its opening. 265 of 347 items have one.
Improving early detection of cognitive impairment in primary care
Early detection of cognitive impairment can connect patients with evaluation and treatment sooner, but many screening methods are difficult to incorporate into routine primary care. …
Read at Medical Xpress → Archived copy (7 Oct 2026), Internet ArchiveA Simple Blood Test Could Detect Alzheimer's Earlier, But Medicare Doesn't Cover It
Medicare currently pays for Alzheimer's blood biomarker tests only after a patient already shows cognitive decline symptoms, not for pre-symptomatic screening, leaving out-of-pocket costs and geographic PET-scan deserts (e.g., Montana, Wyoming, the Dakotas) as barriers, especially for lower-income patients.
Why it matters: Illustrates the real-world coverage gap the ASAP Act aims to close and quantifies dementia's cost burden on Medicare, already about 20% of Medicare spending and projected to reach one in three dollars by 2050.
Free to read? Not known for this outlet.
Read at Association of Health Care Journalists → Archived copy (3 Apr 2026), Internet ArchiveResearchers explore new diagnostic tools, genetic roots for early-onset dementia
Researchers at the new Center for Brain Health at UT Health San Antonio are studying midlife testing for early-onset dementia with blood-based biomarkers to see if they can detect disease activity up to 20 years before symptoms appear.
Why it matters: Midlife blood-based biomarker testing is being studied to see if it can detect early-onset dementia activity up to 20 years before symptoms appear.
Read at Medical Xpress → Archived copy (27 Jan 2026), Internet ArchiveTerry Pratchett's novels may have held clues to his dementia a decade before diagnosis, our new study suggests
The earliest signs of dementia are rarely dramatic. They do not arrive as forgotten names or misplaced keys, but as changes so subtle they are almost impossible to notice: a slightly narrower vocabulary, less variation in description, a gentle flattening of language.
Why it matters: A new study suggests that subtle language changes in Terry Pratchett's novels may have held early clues to his dementia a decade before diagnosis.
Read at Medical Xpress → Archived copy (26 Feb 2026), Internet ArchiveStudy finds ongoing under-diagnosis of high blood pressure in people over 50 in Ireland
High blood pressure becomes more common after age 40, yet new research from The Irish Longitudinal Study on Ageing (TILDA) at Trinity College Dublin shows that many people in Ireland with hypertension are still not optimally diagnosed or treated based on European Guidelines. …
Why it matters: New research shows many people over 50 in Ireland with high blood pressure are still not optimally diagnosed or treated based on European Guidelines.
Read at Medical Xpress → Archived copy (4 Feb 2026), Internet ArchiveA hidden brain signal may reveal Alzheimer’s long before diagnosis
Researchers have discovered a brain activity pattern that can predict which people with mild cognitive impairment are likely to develop Alzheimer’s disease. …
Read at ScienceDaily → Archived copy (18 Sep 2026), Internet ArchiveNew AI technology can provide rapid and reliable dementia diagnosis
Researchers at Örebro University have developed two new AI models that can analyze the brain's electrical activity and accurately distinguish between healthy individuals and patients with dementia, including Alzheimer's disease.
Why it matters: Researchers developed AI models analyzing brain electrical activity to distinguish healthy individuals from dementia and Alzheimer's patients.
Simple blood test may someday allow for diagnosis of LATE dementia during life
Jijing Wang, Ph.D., and Hyun-Sik Yang, MD, of the Department of Neurology at Mass General Brigham, are the lead and senior authors of a paper published in Molecular Neurodegeneration titled "Plasma TDP-43 is a potential biomarker for advanced limbic-predominant…
Why it matters: A simple blood test measuring plasma TDP-43 may someday enable doctors to diagnose advanced LATE dementia during a patient's life.
Read at Medical Xpress → Archived copy (21 Nov 2025), Internet ArchiveSenate Introduces Bipartisan ASAP Act (S. 3267), Companion to House Alzheimer's Screening Bill
S. 3267, the ASAP Act (Alzheimer's Screening and Prevention Act), was introduced in the Senate on Nov. 20, 2025 by Sen. Susan Collins (R-ME) with Sens. Cortez Masto, Capito and Warner as lead cosponsors, one day after the House companion H.R. 6130 (Rep. Vern Buchanan, R-FL). The bill would create a pathway for Medicare coverage of FDA-approved blood-based dementia screening tests. GovInfo bill status (updated 2026-09-26) shows 54 cosponsors (GovTrack: 30 Democrats, 24 Republicans); latest Senate action remains the Nov. 20, 2025 referral to the Committee on Finance. The related House bill was ordered reported by Ways and Means 40-0 on Sept. 16, 2026.
Why it matters: The bipartisan ASAP Act would create a pathway for Medicare coverage of FDA-approved blood-based dementia screening tests.
Read at GovInfo (Library of Congress bill status XML); Alzheimer's Association newsroom; Sen. Cortez Masto press release → Archived copy (5 Jul 2026), Internet ArchiveHouse Introduces Bipartisan Legislation to Accelerate Access to Alzheimer's Screening (ASAP Act)
Reps. Vern Buchanan (R-FL) and Paul Tonko (D-NY) introduced the Alzheimer's Screening and Prevention (ASAP) Act, which would create a Medicare coverage pathway for FDA-approved blood-based dementia screening tests.
Why it matters: Targets a gap identified by clinicians and advocates: despite new FDA-cleared blood tests, Medicare currently won't pay for them as a pre-symptomatic screening tool.
Read at Alzheimer's Association → Archived copy (7 Aug 2026), Internet ArchiveFDA Clears First Blood Test Used in Diagnosing Alzheimer's Disease
The FDA granted 510(k) clearance to Fujirebio's Lumipulse G pTau217/Beta-Amyloid 1-42 Plasma Ratio test, the first blood test cleared to help diagnose Alzheimer's in adults 55 and older with signs of cognitive decline. In FDA's review, positive results correctly identified amyloid plaques 91.7% of the time and negative results correctly ruled them out 97.3% of the time.
Why it matters: A simple blood draw can now help identify amyloid plaques without a spinal tap or PET scan, potentially speeding diagnosis and lowering costs, though FDA stressed it isn't a stand-alone diagnostic test.
Read at FDA → Archived copy (10 Oct 2026), Internet ArchiveReview of Medicare data reveals potential new statistics on dementia diagnosis
A study of Medicare data showed that roughly 9% of beneficiaries — 5.3 million people — may have Alzheimer’s disease or a related dementia.
Why it matters: A review of Medicare data indicates that approximately 9 percent of beneficiaries, totaling 5.3 million people, may have Alzheimer’s disease or a related dementia.
Follow new items in a feed reader: Atom feed.