The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) proposed in January to only cover Biogen's (BIIB +0.82%) Alzheimer's disease drug, Aduhelm, for patients in clinical trials. But Alzheimer's disease advocacy groups are pushing back on that proposal with marketing campaigns. In this Motley Fool Live video recorded on Jan. 26, 2022, Motley Fool contributors Keith Speights and Brian Orelli discuss whether or not these campaigns could benefit Biogen.
Keith Speights: Hey, we talked recently about the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, or CMS, opting to pay only for participants in clinical studies evaluating Biogen's Alzheimer's disease drug Aduhelm. But now, the Alzheimer's Association is mounting an aggressive marketing campaign to try to convince Medicare to cover the drug. I've seen some of their online ads. Another advocacy group called UsAgainstAlzheimer's is running Alzheimer's social media campaign an attempt to change CMS's is decision.
How compelling are their arguments, first of all? Do you think these groups might actually be successful?
Brian Orelli: Yeah, the CMS decision is only an initial opinion. There will be an official decision handed down in a month or two. I think their campaigns could put pressure on CMS to change its initial stance. But investors shouldn't necessarily think that will translate into sales.
Just because CMS actually covers the drive doesn't actually mean the doctors will be convinced to prescribe Aduhelm, so I don't know. It seems it's a really weird situation, where the FDA says it's approved and then CMS says, "Well, we're not going to cover it unless you're in a clinical trial," So I feel like CMS is doing the FDA's dirty work and telling Biogen, "no this drug actually doesn't work," and so it's a little disheartening. It is saddening that CMS has to do it, but I'm glad they are.
Speights: You're right. It was an initial opinion, a draft opinion, CMS doesn't buy public comment. But these organizations are really helping to stir public comment, right. They're hoping to get a lot of patients and family members and just people concerned about Alzheimer's disease to lobby for CMS to pay for this drug.
Orelli: Yeah, that's clearly their plan. We'll see whether it works and whether even if it does work, whether that actually resulted in sales. Although I guess that's not really necessarily their main objective. Their main objective is just that their members should have the right to be able to potentially get the drug paid for.
