President Donald Trump announced on Thursday a landmark agreement with pharmaceutical companies Eli Lilly and Novo Nordisk to broaden the availability and reduce costs for their in-demand obesity medications Zepbound and Wegovy.
These treatments belong to the latest class of drugs known as GLP-1 receptor agonists, which have gained immense popularity in recent years.
However, many patients have struggled to gain consistent access, largely due to high monthly costs—about $500 for higher-dose regimens—and fragmented insurance support.
According to administration officials, the coverage expansion will include Medicare beneficiaries beginning next year, and some patients without insurance will benefit from phased-in price reductions. If approved, the initial doses of new oral versions of the medications will be priced at $149 per month.
“[It] will save lives, improve the health of millions and millions of Americans,” said Trump during the Oval Office announcement, where he referred to GLP-1s as a “fat drug.”
This most recent development is part of Trump’s broader push to curb soaring drug costs amid voters’ concerns about the cost of living. In earlier moves, companies like Pfizer and AstraZeneca agreed to lower drug prices for Medicaid after an executive order in May set a deadline for voluntary price cuts or government-negotiated limits.
As with previous deals, it remains unclear how deeply consumers will feel the price reductions, given that drug costs depend heavily on insurance plans and market competition.
The obesity-treatment medications work by influencing appetite- and fullness-regulating hormones in the gut and brain; in trials, they helped users lose between 15% and 22% of their body weight — in many cases amounting to 50 pounds or more.
Because obesity is treated as a chronic condition, patients typically begin on lower dosages and escalate over time; doctors emphasise that continued use is required to maintain weight loss, otherwise the weight may return.
These quickly-growing treatments have been especially lucrative for Eli Lilly and Novo Nordisk. Lilly recently reported that sales of Zepbound have tripled this year, surpassing $9 billion.
Yet despite the booming market, for many Americans the hefty cost has placed the therapies out of reach.
At present, Medicare — the federal insurance programme for most Americans aged 65 and over — covers these drugs for conditions like type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular disease, but not solely for weight loss.
Under the previous administration, President Joe Biden had proposed a rule last November to change that coverage policy, but the Trump administration shelved the change last spring.
Few state- or federally-funded Medicaid programmes (for low-income individuals) offer coverage, and commercial insurers and employers have been cautious about covering the medications because of the potentially large patient pool.
Doctors say the approximately $500 monthly cost for higher-dose treatments remains prohibitive for those without insurance.
In the broader context, the effort to reduce cost barriers for GLP-1 drugs comes as the White House seeks to show that President Trump is attentive to Americans’ concerns over rising expenses for food, housing, healthcare and other necessities.
“Trump is the friend of the forgotten American,” said Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. at Thursday’s announcement. “Obesity is a disease of poverty. And overwhelmingly these drugs have only been available for people who have wealth.”
Kennedy, who had previously expressed scepticism about GLP-1s in the treatment of obesity and related illnesses, praised Trump for advancing broader access to the drugs.
According to a senior administration official speaking under the condition of anonymity, the previous Democratic administration’s proposal was seen as a boon to Big Pharma because it lacked significant price concessions from the manufacturers. In contrast, the Trump deal was described as a “belt and suspenders” strategy designed to ensure Americans do not bear undue cost for pharmaceutical innovation.
Another senior official said that from next year, Medicare will start covering the medications for individuals with severe obesity and for those who are overweight or obese and face major health issues; those who qualify will face $50 copayments.
The officials revealed that non-covered patients will see lower prices via the administration’s TrumpRx programme, permitting direct purchases from manufacturers. Beginning in January, starting doses of the new oral treatments will cost $149 per month. They also said state and federal Medicaid plans will receive lower prices, and that average TrumpRx drug prices will begin around $350 and decline to about $245 over two years.
Speaking from Watertown, Wisconsin, obesity-medicine specialist Dr Leslie Golden said she treats roughly 600 patients on one of these medications and estimates that more than 75 % struggle with cost despite coverage. “Every visit it’s, ‘How long can we continue to do this? What’s the plan if I can’t continue?’,” she said. “Some of them are working additional jobs or delaying retirement so they can continue to pay for it.”
Both Eli Lilly and Novo Nordisk already cut prices on their treatments—Lilly earlier this year said it would lower the cost of initial Zepbound doses to $349.
Dr Angela Fitch, founder and chief medical officer of Knownwell, a weight-loss and medical-care company, said she sees the deal as potentially the first step toward broader affordability. “We need a hero in obesity care today,” she said. “The community has faced relentless barriers to accessing GLP-1 medications, which has ultimately come down to the price, despite the data we have supporting their effectiveness.”
{Matzav.com}
