Cost isn’t the only reason Medicare doesn’t cover Wegovy By Daniel WeinerJan. 8, 2024

Cost isn’t the only reason Medicare doesn’t cover Wegovy By Daniel WeinerJan. 8, 2024 https://www.statnews.com/2024/01/08/weight-loss-drugs-wegovy-medicare-medicaid-history/?utm_campaign=morning_rounds&utm_medium=email&_hsmi=289053632&_hsenc=p2ANqtz-9FusZIfZ74164_LCx4njH_RhRiJ37YziD0m7LbIf--fSBPRkSIrPXpvi7eFxdBDjUX0fE36S13nAzwN84ERxs9sE-xpQ&utm_content=289053632&utm_source=hs_email Why doesn't Medicare cover Wegovy? It seems like no drugs have ever captured the national attention like the new weight loss medications Wegovy and Ozempic have. (If you need the proof — have you seen our outstanding Obesity Revolution series?) Yet despite the buzz and promising clinical trial data, Medicare does not cover any weight loss prescription. In a new First Opinion, Harvard Medical School student Daniel Weiner writes about the origins of the federal restrictions on anti-obesity medication. It has nothing to do with cost, as one might expect, he says. Rather, it’s “a legislative legacy reflecting a different cultural and clinical understanding of obesity.” Weiner explains that advances in scientific knowledge, along with shifting attitudes about weight, mean that restrictions on coverage may need to be updated for the current day. “Obesity is no longer discussed alongside ‘cosmetic’ conditions as it was in 1990 — it’s a disease we treat,” he writes. Read more.