Medicare will cover Wegovi, but only for patients at severe heart risk

The cost of Wegovi will soon be covered by Medicare, according to an announcement from the federal senior health insurance program. Thursday, And although this is great news for people over the age of 65 who want access to a drug that attracted so much attention for its potential Helps in weight loss, There is only one problem. Medicare will pay only if the patient has potentially serious heart problems.Vegovy is the brand name of Novo Nordisk’s anti-obesity drug semaglutide, which was first approved in the US in 2021. And with Ozempic, which is manufactured by Novo Nordisk, the drugs have become hot items for people who want to lose weight. But Wegovi’s cost, which can exceed $1,300 per month, has proven prohibitively expensive for many Americans. Vegovi found to reduce heart attacks, strokes in major trial

the last summerWhich has paved the way for the FDA to allow doctors to prescribe the drug for that purpose. earlier this month

, A spokesperson for Denmark-based Novo Nordisk told Gizmodo on Thursday that the company is encouraged by the new guidelines from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, but he stressed that obesity alone was an issue that should be examined. When the government makes this offer it is given due consideration. Type of financial assistance.“Vegovi is the only weight management drug also approved to reduce the risk of major adverse cardiovascular events in patients with established cardiovascular disease and obesity or overweight. But there is more work to be done because Part D coverage is not yet available for obesity drugs used for chronic weight management,” the Novo Nordisk person wrote.The Inflation Reduction Act passed in 2022 includes several new provisions to help people with Medicare, including a new limit on prescriptions. The drug costs $3,000 and will be available this year. This change will help 1 million elderly people

Who pay for the incredibly expensive drugs that are commonly used in cancer patients.

But even with positive changes like the Inflation Reduction Act, prescription drug costs in the US remain much higher than in other countries. And these types of reforms help those who have Medicare, with the costs borne by the taxpayer rather than by negotiating lower prices. This is often achieved in peer countries. In 2003 Medicare was banned from negotiating prices on most drugs, a disastrous law that is now slowly being enforced. Backed by legislation championed by Democrats and President Joe Biden.

The Associated Press notes that there is serious debate over whether Medicare should cover anti-obesity drugs like Wegovi, as it is not clear that the higher prices paid by the government will be offset by cost reductions. Or not. treat obesity,

“We will continue to advocate for policies that allow access to anti-obesity drugs for the many patients who still do not have coverage,” NovoNordisk told Gizmodo. “Collaboration across the health care system is key to educating and expanding coverage of anti-obesity medications.”

The Associated Press says there is serious debate over whether Medicare should cover anti-obesity drugs like Wegovi, because it’s often not clear how the high prices paid by the government will outweigh the cost reductions. Will it be compensated or not? Treatment of obesity,

“We will continue to advocate for policies that enable access to obesity medications for the many patients who do not yet have coverage,” Novo Nordisk told Gizmodo. “Collaboration across the health care system is critical to educate and broaden coverage of obesity medications.”