H.R. 6130: ASAP Act
Sponsor
Vern Buchanan
Republican · FL-16
Nearly half the House backs Medicare Alzheimer's blood tests
Why it matters
199 House members — the sponsor plus 198 cosponsors, made up of 124 Democrats, 73 Republicans, and one independent — have signed on to a bill that would add early Alzheimer's and dementia detection tests to the list of things Medicare pays for. Coverage would not begin until January 1, 2028, and only for tests that clear the FDA first.
H.R. 6130 does one thing: it adds a new category to the list of services Medicare pays for, called Alzheimer's disease and related dementias early detection screening tests. A test qualifies only if it is meant to catch the disease at the pre-symptomatic or early stage, has already cleared the FDA, and is furnished on or after January 1, 2028.
The bill names one kind of test outright — a genomic sequencing test run on blood or a blood product. Everything else is left to the Secretary of Health and Human Services, who could approve other tests that deliver comparable results. The bill offers a list of candidates: single-analyte tests, analysis of cell-free nucleic acids, multiplex panels, whole genome sequencing, protein expression, whole exome, whole transcriptome, and some medical imaging, drawn from blood, tissue, urine, or another biospecimen.
Payment is deliberately unremarkable. Rather than building a new reimbursement scheme, the bill routes these tests through the same system Medicare already uses to pay for clinical laboratory work.
How much this changes in practice depends less on Congress than on how generously HHS reads the word "equivalent." A narrow reading covers a handful of blood tests. A broad one pulls in imaging and a range of newer molecular tools. The bill sets the door; the department decides how wide it opens.
Bill Progress
Latest Action · Nov 19, 2025
Referred to Energy and Commerce, and in addition to the Committee on Ways and Means, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned. for review
H.R. 6130 Bill Summary
What H.R. 6130 actually does.
Early dementia testing becomes something Medicare pays for
The bill adds Alzheimer's and related dementias early detection screening tests to the statutory list of Medicare-covered services, which is what makes coverage a legal obligation rather than a case-by-case decision.
Nothing is covered before January 1, 2028
The definition only reaches tests furnished on or after that date. Someone who pays for a qualifying test in 2026 or 2027 is outside the bill.
A blood-based test is named in the text
Genomic sequencing tests run on blood or blood products are written into the definition by name, so they do not depend on a regulator's judgment call to qualify.
HHS decides which other tests count
Any other test must be judged by the Secretary to produce comparable results. The bill lists single-analyte tests, cell-free nucleic acid analysis, multiplex panels, whole genome sequencing, protein expression, whole exome, whole transcriptome, and medical imaging as possibilities, based on blood, blood products, tissue, urine, or other biospecimens.
The FDA gate comes first
A test must already be cleared, classified, or approved through an FDA pathway before it can qualify for coverage. A test still in development does not get in on the strength of its results alone.
Paid like any other lab test
The bill folds these tests into Medicare's existing clinical laboratory payment system rather than creating a separate rate or structure for them.
Who benefits from H.R. 6130?
People on Medicare noticing memory changes
If a qualifying test exists and your doctor orders it in 2028 or later, it would be covered care rather than something you arrange and pay for yourself.
Families trying to plan ahead
An answer at the pre-symptomatic stage buys time to sort out treatment, caregiving, housing, and money while the person diagnosed can still take part in those decisions.
Patients who would rather give blood than sit for imaging
The bill is built around blood and blood-product testing, which is a shorter and less involved appointment than the specialist and imaging route.
Test developers who already cleared the FDA
A company whose test has been through 510(k), De Novo, or premarket approval would have a defined Medicare payment path instead of negotiating coverage test by test.
Who is affected by H.R. 6130?
CMS
Medicare would have to stand up a new covered-service category and slot qualifying tests into the clinical laboratory fee schedule before the 2028 start date.
HHS rulemakers
The Secretary holds the discretion that determines the bill's real scope, deciding which tests beyond the named blood-based category produce comparable results.
Test makers without FDA clearance
A screening tool that has not been through an FDA pathway does not qualify, regardless of how it performs.
Anyone seeking a test before 2028
The bill creates no coverage in the meantime. Tests furnished before January 1, 2028 fall outside the definition entirely.
HR6130 Legislative Journey
House: Committee Action
Nov 19, 2025
Referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce, and in addition to the Committee on Ways and Means, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned.
About the Sponsor
Vern Buchanan
Republican, Florida's 16th congressional district · 19 years in Congress
Committees: Joint Committee on Taxation, Ways and Means
View full profile →
Cosponsors (206)
This bill has 206 cosponsors: 128 Democrats, 77 Republicans, 1 Independent, reflecting bipartisan support. Cosponsors represent 43 states: Alaska, Alabama, Arizona, and 40 more.
Paul Tonko
Democrat · NY
Timothy Kennedy
Democrat · NY
Jennifer Kiggans
Republican · VA
Ritchie Torres
Democrat · NY
Gus Bilirakis
Republican · FL
Brian Fitzpatrick
Republican · PA
Mike Kelly
Republican · PA
Mike Ezell
Republican · MS
Eugene Vindman
Democrat · VA
Young Kim
Republican · CA
Nicole Malliotakis
Republican · NY
George Latimer
Democrat · NY
Cosponsor Coverage Map
Committee Sponsors
Ways and Means Committee
20 of 45 committee members cosponsored
Energy and Commerce Committee
26 of 54 committee members cosponsored
31 Republicans across these committees haven't cosponsored yet. Mobilize their constituents
H.R. 6130 Quick Facts
- Committee
- Ways and Means
- Chamber
- House
- Policy
- Health
- Introduced
- Nov 19, 2025
Referred to Energy and Commerce, and in addition to the Committee on Ways and Means, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned. for review
Nov 19, 2025
Official Sources
Official bill page with status, full text, sponsors, and committee actions for H.R. 6130.
The Medicare definitions section the bill amends, adding early detection screening tests as subparagraph (KK) and new subsection (nnn).
The Medicare Part B payment section the bill amends so qualifying tests are paid through the clinical laboratory fee schedule.
One of three FDA review pathways a test must clear before it can qualify for coverage under the bill.
The section 513(f)(2) classification route named in the bill as a qualifying FDA pathway.
The section 515 approval route named in the bill as a qualifying FDA pathway.
The existing Medicare laboratory payment system the bill routes these tests through rather than building a new one.
FDA announcement of the first cleared blood test for Alzheimer's diagnosis, an example of the test category the bill would make Medicare pay for.
H.R. 6130 Common Questions
What does H.R. 6130 do?
It adds early detection tests for Alzheimer's disease and related dementias to the services Medicare pays for, built around blood-based tests, for tests furnished on or after January 1, 2028.
Does Medicare cover an Alzheimer's blood test right now?
Not as a defined benefit. There is no covered-service category in Medicare law for early Alzheimer's detection screening, which is the gap H.R. 6130 would fill by writing one in.
When would coverage actually start?
January 1, 2028. The bill's definition only reaches tests furnished on or after that date, so nothing is covered in the meantime even if the bill passes sooner.
Which tests would qualify for coverage?
Genomic sequencing tests run on blood or blood products are named outright. HHS could also approve comparable tests, including single-analyte tests, cell-free nucleic acid analysis, multiplex panels, whole genome sequencing, protein expression, whole exome, whole transcriptome, and some medical imaging.
Does a test need FDA approval first?
Yes. A test has to be cleared, classified, or approved through an FDA pathway before it can qualify. That gate applies to the named blood tests and to anything HHS adds later.
Would you need symptoms to get the test covered?
No. The bill is aimed at the pre-symptomatic and early stage of Alzheimer's disease or related dementias, so a qualifying test is meant to be used before symptoms are advanced.
Is this a pilot program or a permanent benefit?
Permanent. H.R. 6130 writes these tests into Medicare's list of covered services rather than authorizing a demonstration that expires.
Who introduced H.R. 6130 and what are its chances?
Rep. Vern Buchanan (R-FL) introduced it with Rep. Paul Tonko (D-NY) on November 19, 2025, and 198 members have cosponsored it across both parties. It is still sitting in the Energy and Commerce and Ways and Means committees with no vote scheduled.
Based on H.R. 6130 bill text
H.R. 6130 Bill Text
“To amend title XVIII of the Social Security Act to provide for Medicare coverage of blood-based dementia screening tests.”
Source: U.S. Government Publishing Office
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