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Emory researchers tell House committee Georgia Memory Net is readying the state for new Alzheimer's therapies
Summary
Emory researchers and Georgia Memory Net directors told the House Public and Community Health Committee about diagnostic advances, statewide memory clinics, and infusion‑based therapies that reduce amyloid plaques; the network reports nearly 6,000 people served and $7.12 million in state support.
Emory Alzheimer's researchers and Georgia Memory Net officials briefed the House Committee on Public and Community Health on a statewide effort to diagnose and treat Alzheimer's disease earlier, expand access in rural areas, and prepare the health system for recently approved disease‑modifying therapies.
Dr. Levy, head of Emory's Alzheimer's Disease Research Center, told legislators that two antibody infusion medicines approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration remove amyloid plaques from patients' brains and produced roughly a 30 percent slowing of decline in 18‑month clinical trials. "If I can keep somebody independent for an extra year or two, that's a lot," Levy said, summarizing the potential patient and family benefit while noting the need for careful monitoring for adverse effects such as brain swelling and bleeding.
Presenters described a new blood diagnostic test (p‑tau217) the FDA recently cleared that can help rule out amyloid pathology and reduce the need for PET imaging or lumbar puncture in many patients; McIntosh and Levy emphasized that positive blood tests should be confirmed with PET or cerebrospinal fluid testing before administering high‑risk therapies. Dr. Levy described the tests as useful to screen symptomatic patients and said broad, asymptomatic screening could become appropriate later as prevention trials and evidence evolve: "If it started before symptoms begin, it's likely to be even more effective."
Rebecca McIntosh, director for Georgia Memory Net, outlined the program's structure: a statewide network of memory assessment clinics, telehealth partnerships with county health offices, embedded services coordinators, and a shared IT infrastructure. She said the network has seen just under 6,000 patients since inception, with more than a quarter from rural counties, and that GMN and Emory account for a majority of Georgians currently receiving the new therapies.
Committee members pressed on feasibility for rural hospitals and medical‑school engagement; presenters said training, use of existing infusion clinics in rural hospitals, telehealth, and resident rotations through memory assessment clinics can expand access. McIntosh said the program receives $7,120,000 per year in state support and stressed that Georgia Memory Net is structured as clinical care (with research separated), which the presenters said has helped secure federal research funding.
Panelists asked legislators to support continued investment in the network, workforce training, and the IT infrastructure needed to track outcomes and coordinate care. The committee asked no budgetary votes on the program at the hearing; presenters left brochures and offered to meet further with staff and members.
