150: Rethinking Parkinson’s Care: Prevention, Equity, and Access to Treatment

Welcome to the NeurologyLive® Mind Moments® podcast. Tune in to hear leaders in neurology sound off on topics that impact your clinical practice.In this episode, "Rethinking Parkinson’s Care: Prevention, Equity, and Access to Treatment," Michael Okun, MD, neurologist, author of The Parkinson Plan, and medical advisor for the Parkinson’s Foundation, discusses the urgent need for global access to levodopa, the gold-standard treatment for Parkinson disease. He outlines the consequences of delayed or unavailable treatment worldwide, including worsening outcomes and unnecessary disability. Okun highlights lessons from global HIV drug distribution that can inform equitable levodopa access, emphasizing the importance of tailoring strategies to local economies and healthcare systems. Additionally, he breaks down key components of The Parkinson Plan, including prevention, research priorities, amplifying patient and caregiver voices, and rethinking care models to better address the world’s fastest growing neurodegenerative disorder. Finally, he explains how the book can serve as a resource not only for clinicians, but also for patients, families, and policymakers.Looking for more Movement disorders discussion? Check out the NeurologyLive® Movement disorders clinical focus page.Episode Breakdown: 1:00 – Consequences of delayed or unavailable levodopa treatment for patients worldwide 2:40 – How universal levodopa access could change care in low-resource settings 5:15 – Lessons from global HIV drug distribution for equitable levodopa delivery 7:00 – Neurology News Network 8:35 – Key pillars of The Parkinson Plan and rethinking Parkinson’s care models The stories featured in this week's Neurology News Minute, which will give you quick updates on the following developments in neurology, are further detailed here: EMA Approves Semaglutide as First GLP-1 RA for Cardiovascular, Stroke-Related Benefits Del-Zota Reverses Duchenne Disease Progression in 1-Year Trial Update MDA and PPMD Release Consensus Guidelines for Safe and Equitable Use of Gene Therapy in Duchenne Thanks for listening to the NeurologyLive® Mind Moments® podcast. To support the show, be sure to rate, review, and subscribe wherever you listen to podcasts. For more neurology news and expert-driven content, visit neurologylive.com.