ASAP Act

Key Points

• This bill would require Medicare to pay for new types of blood tests that can find signs of Alzheimer’s disease and other forms of dementia. These tests are designed to catch the disease early, even before a person starts showing clear symptoms.
• To be covered, the tests must be approved by the FDA. While the focus is on blood tests that look at genes and proteins, the government could also choose to cover similar tests that use urine samples or medical imaging.
• The goal is to help doctors find brain diseases sooner so patients can start treatments or make plans earlier. Currently, many dementia tests can be expensive or hard to get, and this change would make them more available to seniors.
• If passed, Medicare would start paying for these screenings on January 1, 2028. This gives the government and health care providers time to set up the rules for how the tests will be used and paid for.