President Donald Trump announces plan to expand IVF access
President Donald Trump announced a plan to expand IVF access, including employer coverage option and major fertility drug discounts.
The Trump administration is expected to announce deals with Eli Lilly and Novo Nordisk to cut the prices of some weight loss drugs to less than $150 for a month’s supply.
The negotiated deals are expected to extend Medicare and Medicaid coverage for the obesity drugs, the Wall Street Journal and Endpoints News reported.
The deal to be announced Nov. 6 involves Lilly and Novo’s weight-loss medications, which have been wildly popular but difficult for some consumers to afford due to limited insurance coverage and expensive list prices.
Endpoints News and Wall Street Journal reported that Lilly and Novo would offer the lowest dose of their weight-loss drugs at $149 per month. In return, the drugs would gain coverage under Medicare, a federal health insurance program for people aged 65 and older or who have disabilities.
The two popular weight-loss drugs – Lilly’s Zepbound and Novo’s Wegovy – are not currently covered by Medicare as an obesity treatment.
Separately, the Wall Street Journal reported that the Trump administration was also negotiating deals with Lilly and Novo to allow some of their obesity drugs to be sold via the government’s direct-to-consumer website, TrumpRx, which will launch in 2026.
In a statement, Novo Nordisk said the company “is engaged in constructive discussions with the administration.” Lilly representatives did not respond to questions about negotiations with the administration.
The weight loss drugs aren’t a first: President Donald Trump has already announced deals with several pharmaceutical companies to sell other discounted medications to federal health programs or TrumpRx.
The president has been pressuring drugmakers to lower their prices to what patients pay in other nations, a concept known as most favored nation pricing. On Sept. 30, Trump announced a most favored nation agreement with Pfizer to sell medications through Medicaid at a lower cost.
Last month, Trump also said EMD Serono, the largest fertility drug manufacturer in the United States, agreed to lower the price of a commonly used in vitro fertilization medication.
Most insurers don’t cover obesity drugs
Doctors who prescribe weight-loss drugs said extending Medicare coverage for older adults and making drugs more affordable for younger consumers is critically important.
“These medications are really life changing for so many people,” said Dr. Angela Fitch, former president of the Obesity Medicine Association. It’s “very challenging for people to afford the current prices.”
The weight-loss drugs known as glucagon-like peptide-1 drugs, or GLP-1s, suppress the appetite of users, leading to weight loss.
While insurers often cover GLP-1 drugs when prescribed for diabetes or heart conditions, more than half of employer insurance plans have refused to cover the medications for obesity. In 2024, 44% of all large employers covered GLP-1 drugs for obesity, up from 41% in 2023, according to Mercer, a benefits consultant.
In November 2024, the Biden administration announced plans to extend Medicare and Medicaid coverage for obesity medications including Wegovy and Zepbound. Under a rule proposed by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, the Biden administration estimated 3.4 million Americans on Medicare would be eligible for the drugs beginning in 2026.
Another 4 million Medicaid recipients eligible for coverage under the Biden rule. But such coverage would take place only if the Trump administration finalized the rule.
Contributing: Reuters