Insider
- Americans are struggling to afford the buzzy weight-loss drug Ozempic.
- People who faced higher costs for Ozempic were less likely to keep taking it, a new study found.
- It's the latest evidence that affordability will be a key part of how effective these drugs are.
Americans are struggling to afford the buzzy weight-loss drug Ozempic, even with insurance coverage, a new study shows.
The GLP-1 medication, which is used to treat Type 2 diabetes and for weight loss under the brand name Wegovy, has gained popularity in recent months. But the "game-changer" treatments can be costly, with a price tag of about $900 to $1,300 per month. With insurance, copays can range from less than $10 to more than $50.
A study published Thursday found that among patients who were prescribed GLP-1 medications for diabetes, those who had higher copay costs were less likely to still be on the medication after a year compared to those with a lower copays.
The study analyzed information from more than 90,000 adults prescribed GLP-1 drugs or or another new type of medication for their diabetes, to see who consistently took the medications. It found that those who had to pay $50 or more each month were 50% less likely to keep taking the medications compared to those who paid less than $10.
The researchers looked at information between 2014 and 2020, a time before GLP-1 medications were approved for weight loss.
As interest in the medications grows, whether or not Americans can afford them could determine how effective they are. Especially after a 2022 study found that people who stopped taking Ozempic regained two-thirds of their weight within a year.
"It keeps supporting the argument that we need to figure out how to reduce costs for our patients," Dr. Utibe Essien, one of the co-authors of the study and assistant professor of medicine at UCLA told Insider. Essien said he expects with the uptick in use of GLP-1 medications for weight loss, the same issues of cost may impact how many people stay on the medications.
Americans are grappling with how to afford new weight-loss and diabetes medications
While the study looked at adults taking medications for diabetes and heart failure, it comes at a time when Americans are contending with how to afford GLP-1 medications for weight loss.
Employers, which play a role in the healthcare coverage of more than 150 million Americans, are still grappling with how to cover the medications for weight loss — some are covering them, while others are not. Medicaid, which provides health coverage for low-income people, can choose to cover the medications — but fewer than 20 states do, according to one report.
And Medicare, the federal program that covers healthcare for people 65 and older, is prohibited by law from covering any weight-loss medications.
Meanwhile, other Americans will continue to go to Canada, Mexico, and unregulated online pharmacies to get the weight-loss medications for cheap.
The medications cost more in the US than they do in other countries, in part because the US government doesn't negotiate on drug prices.
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