Trump strikes deal with weight-loss drugmakers

President Trump unveiled a deal Thursday with drugmakers Eli Lilly and Novo Nordisk to expand coverage and reduce prices for their popular obesity treatments Zepbound and Wegovy.

- BY TOM MURPHY, AAMER MADHANI AND JONEL ALECCIA

MEHMET OZ speaks as President Trump and FDA commissioner Martin Makary listen on Sept. 30.

(FRANCIS CHUNG Politico/Bloomberg)

The drugs are part of a new generation of obesity medications known as GLP-1 receptor agonists, which have soared in popularity in recent years.

But access to the drugs has been a problem for patients because of their cost around $500 a month for higher doses and insurance coverage has been spotty.

Coverage of the drugs for obesity will expand to Medicare patients starting next year, according to the administration, which said some lower prices also will be phased in for patients without coverage. Starting doses of new, pill versions of the treatments also will cost $149 a month if they are approved.

"[It] will save lives, improve the health of millions and millions of Americans," Trump said in an Oval Office announcement in which he referred to GLP-1s as a "fat drug."

Thursday's announcement is the latest attempt by the Trump administration to rein in soaring drug prices in its efforts to address cost-of-living concerns among voters. Drugmakers Pfizer and AstraZeneca recently agreed to lower the cost of prescription drugs for Medicaid after an executive order in May set a deadline for drugmakers to electively lower prices or face new limits on what the government will pay.

As with the other deals, it's not clear how much the price drop will be felt by consumers. Drug prices can vary based on the competition for treatments and insurance coverage.

Price is a barrier to popular treatments

The obesity drugs work by targeting hormones in the gut and brain that affect appetite and feelings of fullness. In clinical trials, they helped people shed between 15% and 22% of their body weight-up to 50 pounds or more in many cases.