US plans Medicare, Medicaid coverage for weight-loss drugs, Washington Post reports
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GLP-1 drugs have gained popularity for their ability to reduce body weight by suppressing appetite and slowing digestion.
PHOTO: REUTERS
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WASHINGTON – The Trump administration is planning an experiment to cover weight-loss drugs under Medicare and Medicaid, The Washington Post reported on Aug 1, citing documents from the Centres for Medicare and Medicaid Services.
GLP-1 drugs, originally developed for Type 2 diabetes, have gained popularity for their ability to reduce body weight by suppressing appetite and slowing digestion. But their high cost – typically between US$5,000 (S$6,490) and US$7,000 per year – has raised concerns about long-term affordability.
The proposed plan would permit state Medicaid programmes and Medicare Part D insurance plans to voluntarily cover GLP-1 drugs, including those from market leaders Novo Nordisk and Eli Lilly, the report said.
Lilly and Novo are leaders in the weight-loss drug market, which some analysts expect could bring in more than US$150 billion in revenues by the next decade. Lilly’s shares were up nearly 2 per cent in premarket trading.
The initiative is slated to begin in April 2026 for Medicaid and January 2027 for Medicare. If it clears the way, it would mark a shift in federal policy after the administration said earlier in 2025 that the programmes would not cover weight loss drugs.
A proposal under the Biden administration had also aimed to expand access to the medications.
The Centres for Medicare and Medicaid Services, Lilly and Novo did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment. REUTERS
