AXIOS March 14, 2024
Federal regulators’ recent approval of anti-obesity drug Wegovy to reduce cardiovascular risks in overweight people opens the door for Medicare to cover the pricey treatment for more people — though takeup is likely to be slow initially.
Why it matters: More than 40% of Medicare enrollees have at least one heart condition, meaning the new Wegovy approval could greatly expand older adults’ access to a drug that so far has been limited for this group.
Context: Medicare, the country’s largest health insurer, is barred from paying for weight-loss drugs, but it can cover the drugs for other approved indications.
- Those include diabetes, which the new class of GLP-1 agonists were initially approved for. In 2021, Medicare prescription drug plans...
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Topics: Biotechnology, CMS, Govt Agencies, Insurance, Medicare, Patient / Consumer, Pharma / Biotech, Provider