Popular GLP-1 weight-loss drugs will become much more affordable for millions of older adults starting Wednesday, July 1, as Medicare begins to cover them \u2014 for now.<\/p>\n
The Medicare GLP-1 Bridge is a temporary pilot program that will allow eligible Medicare recipients to get blockbuster anti-obesity medications like Wegovy and Zepbound for $50 a month.<\/p>\n
Medicare is federal health insurance for people who are 65 or older. The GLP-1 Bridge is temporary because current federal law doesn\u2019t allow Medicare Part D \u2014 the part that helps pay for prescriptions drugs \u2014 to cover medications prescribed purely for weight loss. (Medicare does cover GLP-1 drugs when they\u2019re prescribed for Type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular disease and other health problems.)<\/p>\n
Almost 40% of Americans over age 65 have obesity, according to government statistics<\/a>.<\/p>\n GLP-1 drugs are effective at helping people lose weight by reducing appetite and cravings. But they can also cost hundreds of dollars a month without insurance.<\/p>\n So the government is trying out what it calls a \u201cshort-term demonstration\u201d to test access to GLP-1 drugs for Medicare recipients.<\/p>\n Many people in the Medicare population probably stand to experience substantial benefit from these drugs, says Dr. Harlan Krumholz, a cardiologist and professor at the Yale School of Medicine.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m tremendously excited that we\u2019re addressing the access and affordability issues for people so that they have that option,\u201d Krumholz, director of the Yale New Haven Hospital Center for Outcomes Research and Evaluation, tells TODAY.com. <\/p>\n \u201c(But) the older you are, the less evidence there is from any trial about you, because most of these trials haven\u2019t really enrolled people over 70 or 80, so we need to continue to learn and see how this works… Especially in older populations, we need to continue to gather more evidence.\u201d<\/p>\n Older people, in particular, are at greater risk for health problems at lower body weights<\/a>, he adds.<\/p>\n The new program<\/a> will operate outside of Medicare Part D and is scheduled to end on December 31, 2027, while longer term solutions are being discussed.<\/p>\n \u201cWe know that even with the right diet and exercise, many patients will struggle to lose the weight they need to lose for their health. For these individuals, GLP-1 drugs can be truly transformative,\u201d said Dr. Mehmet Oz, administrator for the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, in a statement<\/a>.<\/p>\n \u201cThey can reduce the risks of myocardial infarction<\/a>, stroke, kidney disease, chronic joint pain \u2014 all this can also reduce costs in our precious Medicare program.\u201d<\/p>\n