Opportunities for improving managed care for individuals with dementia: Part 1 - The issues

In this first part of a two-part article, we review the prevalence of, cost s associated with, and treatments for Alzheimer's disease and related demen tias, a leading cause of disability in the elderly. New, innovative, and co stly drugs to combat dementia are being introduced, causing pharmacy costs to rise. These new drugs, however, may reduce overall medical costs and imp rove the quality of life of patients with dementia and their caregivers. Is sues of cost, excessive service utilization, and quality of life will have significant impact on managed care organizations in the near future as the rapidly aging population experiences significant disability and illness rel ated to dementia. In the second part of this article, we describe the frame work for a disease management program for patients with dementia, similar t o programs in existence for diabetes and other chronic diseases, that could enable managed care organizations to effectively care for these patients.