Ozempic and other weight loss drugs are getting more popular
A new survey found that nearly 13 percent of American adults are currently taking a new class of weight-loss drugs, an increase of six percentage points from 18 months ago, while one in five American adults, or 18 percent, say they have already taken one.
Another one in five adults who don’t use GLP-1 drugs said they want to take one to lose weight.
The GLP-1 class of drugs, led by Eli Lilly’s Zepbound and Mounjaro and Novo Nordisk’s Ozempic and Wegovy, was approved in the United States only four years ago for the treatment of obesity, but is quickly becoming the most prescribed drugs. They work by suppressing a gut hormone that controls appetite.
The follow-up survey, conducted by nonprofit health policy researcher KFF, also found that 45% of U.S. adults diagnosed with diabetes report currently using a GLP-1 medication, as do 29% diagnosed with heart disease and 23% reporting being diagnosed with overweight or obesity in the past five years.
The drugs can cost about $1,000 a month before discounts and discounts, and although most GLP-1 users said their insurance covered at least part of the cost, more than half said they were difficult to afford, including one in four who said they were “very difficult” to afford. About a quarter of GLP-1 users report paying the entire cost of the drug out of pocket.
Across all age groups, current GLP-1 use is highest among those aged 50-64 at 22%. Only 9% of adults 65 and older currently use these medications, reflecting Medicare’s lack of coverage for medications used for weight loss.
The Trump administration recently announced deals with Lilly and Novo Nordisk to lower the prices of some of their weight-loss drugs in exchange for partial Medicare coverage, starting in 2026. The White House also has deals with other pharmaceutical companies to lower the prices of some prescription drugs.
The KFF proll study found that about one in four adults report that they or someone living with them had difficulty paying for their prescription drugs in the past 12 months, with the figure rising to 41% among uninsured adults, 33% of Hispanic adults, and 32% of Black adults (32%).
The survey was conducted from October 27 to November 2 and has a margin of error of plus or minus 3 percentage points.
