Trump says prices for Ozempic, other weight-loss drugs to drop in U.S.
Global News
Trump, Eli Lilly and Novo Nordisk unveiled a deal to slash the prices of popular GLP-1 weight‑loss drugs for government health insurance programs, as well as for cash payers.
U.S. President Donald Trump, Eli Lilly and Novo Nordisk unveiled a deal on Thursday to slash the prices of popular GLP-1 weight‑loss drugs like Ozempic for the government’s Medicare and Medicaid programs, as well as for cash payers.
The move is aimed at increasing access to the treatments through U.S. Medicare for people aged 65 and over and the Medicaid program for low-income people, which together provide healthcare coverage for nearly half of all Americans.
U.S. patients currently pay by far the most for prescription medicines, often nearly three times more than in other developed nations, and Trump has been pressuring drugmakers to lower their prices to what patients pay elsewhere.
“GLP-1s have been top of mind and not just because of the cardiometabolic benefits that they provide, but also because it is an issue of fairness and utilization and pricing and access and affordability for the American people,” an administration official told reporters.
Trump said the move “will save lives, improve the health of millions and millions of Americans,” during an Oval Office announcement in which he referred to GLP-1s as a “fat drug.”
Starter doses of rival weight‑loss pills being developed by Lilly and Novo, if approved, will cost $149 per month for all Medicare and Medicaid enrollees and via the White House’s new direct-to-consumer site, TrumpRx, senior administration officials said.
For currently available injectable GLP-1s used for diabetes and other covered health issues like Ozempic, Wegovy, Mounjaro and Zepbound, prices would fall to $245 per month for patients with Medicare or Medicaid, they said.
On TrumpRx, the average price of injectables and pills will start at or below $350 monthly and is expected to trend downward to $245 within two years.
