Washington, D.C. – Congresswoman Elise Stefanik sent a letter urging the Center for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) to address the lack of individuals living with Alzheimer’s accessing the new Medicare benefit that provides for assessment and care planning. In 2017, CMS established this new benefit, yet recent data indicates that less than 1% of eligible recipients utilized it. The letter asks CMS to conduct an education and outreach campaign to ensure that clinicians, Medicare beneficiaries with cognitive impairments, and their families are aware of the assessment and care planning services that are currently available to them.
“This new benefit is critical for those living with Alzheimer’s disease and their families, and the Center for Medicare & Medicaid Services must ensure eligible recipients are utilizing every benefit they qualify for,” said Congresswoman Stefanik. “I am a proud advocate for awareness and research for Alzheimer’s disease. I recently co-lead the Younger Alzheimer’s Act and led the reauthorization of the Older Americans Act, which included protections for those affected by Alzheimer’s under the age of 60, and I will continue to be an outspoken advocate for those whose lives are impacted by this heartbreaking disease in Congress.”
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