Lower prices could reshape the obesity drug market

What you probably already know: The White House yesterday said it has reached agreement with the makers of popular weight loss, diabetes and heart disease drugs Ozempic and Wegovy to dramatically lower prices. Pharmaceutical manufacturers Eli Lilly and Co. and Novo Nordisk have agreed to drop the prices of both drugs to $350 per month, down from $1,350 for Wegovy and $1,000 for Ozempic, when purchased through TrumpRX. Prices for Zepbound and Orforglipron  — similar drugs both manufactured by Eli Lilly — will fall to $346 per month, a 68% drop. Medicare prices for Ozempic and Wegovy will fall even further, to $245 per month. The so-called GLP-1 agonists are prescribed primarily for weight loss. The White House says the price reductions are part of its “Make America Healthy Again” movement.

Why it matters: The price drop comes at a time when employers are grappling with whether to include costly GLP-1 medications in their health plans as demand rises and budgets tighten. The 2025 KFF Employer Health Benefits Survey finds that “there was a notable increase” in firms with more than 5,000 employees including the drugs in their health plans, though it notes that many reported that use was higher than expected and covering the drugs significantly increased prescription costs. Some employers said they were considering scaling back coverage, and many have begun to restrict coverage only for employees with certain medical conditions like diabetes. Forty-three percent of large firms covered the medications this year, up 15% from 2024. Only 19% of companies with more than 200 workers offer coverage for GLP-1 agonists.

What it means: Writing in the Puget Sound Business Journal, insurance company Assured Partners Senior Vice President Katrina Johnson notes that women are driving much of the current demand for the drugs, arguing that the GLP-1 conversation is fundamentally about women’s health access. “Saying yes to GLP-1 doesn’t have to mean saying yes to open-ended, unchecked prescribing,” she writes, adding that lifestyle coaching and outcomes-based coverage should be part of the conversation.  But “when women don’t get access to GLP-1s, we’re not just talking about missed weight loss. We’re talking about continued struggles with metabolic disease, postpartum health, hormonal imbalance, cardiovascular risk and mental wellness.”

What happens next: The White House notes that Eli Lilly and Novo Nordisk are also announcing large investments to expand manufacturing. Novo Nordisk is committing $10 billion to increase its U.S. footprint, while Eli Lilly is investing $27 billion in its manufacturing chain. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates that 40% of Americans are obese. The White House calls the price reductions “a historic opportunity to reverse the obesity epidemic and associated chronic disease when coupled with lifestyle change to preserve and improve health gains.”