The Food and Drug Administration on Monday approved the first new treatment for Alzheimer’s disease in about 20 years. Currently available Alzheimer’s drugs treat the disease’s symptoms. The newly-approved medicine, called Aduhelm, is the first to attack a substance that could be associated with the underlying causes of the disease — a toxic and sticky protein in the brain called amyloid. 

The new drug, which was approved through an accelerated process, reduces clumps of the protein so, it is believed, they don’t disrupt brain cells function, and thus  help slow the progression of the disease.

The Alzheimer’s Association estimates that 6.0 million Americans 65 and older were living with the disease as of 2020, or 12% of the 65 and over population. As more and more of the baby boomer generation reaches that age, the number of Americans with the disease is projected to grow to 7.2 million by 2025, an 18.5% increase from 2020.

Yet this growth will not be uniform everywhere. In some states, the number of 65 and older people with Alzheimer’s disease is projected to grow by less than 10%, while in others it is projected to grow by more than 30%.

To determine the states where Alzheimer’s is soaring, 24/7 Tempo reviewed the projected increase in the number of Americans 65 and older with Alzheimer’s disease between 2020 and 2025 in every state from the 2021 Alzheimer’s Association’s Alzheimer’s disease Facts and Figures report. 

In addition to the health challenges faced by those with the disease, Alzheimer’s care can be incredibly costly. According to the Alzheimer’s Association, more than $51 billion-worth of Medicaid payments were made for Americans 65 and over with Alzheimer’s disease in 2020. Medicaid costs nationwide are projected to grow by 20.2% by 2025.

Americans 65 and older should consider the cost of long-term care when determining when and where they are going to retire. These are all 50 states ranked from worst to best for healthy retirement. 

Click here to see the states where Alzheimer’s is soaring

To determine the states where Alzheimer’s is soaring, 24/7 Tempo reviewed the projected increase in the number of Americans 65 and older with Alzheimer’s disease between 2020 and 2025 in every state from the 2021 Alzheimer’s Association’s Alzheimer’s disease Facts and Figures report. 

The share of the population that is 65 years or older in each state came from the U.S. Census Bureau’s 2019 American Community Survey. The percentage of Americans 65 and older with Alzheimer’s disease was calculated using Alzheimer’s Association data and population data from the ACS.

The average retirement income by state also comes from the ACS.