Biogen plans flood of public comments in response to Medicare decision - Endpoints
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Biogen plans to inundate the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services ("CMS") with public comments in response to the agency's decision yesterday to drastically limit coverage of the Alzheimer's treatment Aduhelm (aducanumab).
Those comments will come over the next 30 days, according to Endpoints News, which obtained an internal company email with the details.

"If this draft becomes final in April, it will significantly limit Medicare reimbursement for Aduhelm and future therapies in this class," Biogen US President Alisha Alaimo wrote, adding that the draft decision was a "shocking discrimination against everyone with Alzheimerâs disease."
She noted that the company is launching a plan to educate doctors and patient advocates and other stakeholders to make submissions to CMS.
Alaimo added that CMS has reversed course on a coverage determination in the past, citing the agency's about-face on CAR-T therapies in 2019.
Other pharmas and biotechs working on Alzheimer's treatments are also taking it on the chin today: Prothena Corp. (PRTA
-16.0%), Annovis Bio (ANVS
-5.6%), Eisai (OTCPK:ESALY
-4.7%), Eli Lilly (LLY
-3.8%), Anavex Life Sciences Corp. (AVXL
-2.0%), and Cassava Sciences (SAVA
-1.3%).
Check out why Seeking Alpha contributor John Kastanes believes Cassava's simufilam is unlikely to win FDA approval.

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