METAIRIE, La. — With a 40 percent obesity rate in Louisiana, access to affordable treatment is critical.
It took decades, but beginning in January, health insurance will have to cover weight loss surgeries.
Still, those weight loss injections are not covered.
Now there’s a new price update.
GLP-1 injections have changed the health of people who have difficulty losing weight. That excess weight can lead to chronic health problems. The medication regulates a disrupted metabolism and helps get rid of the food noise in the brain.
The medication works, but the cost doesn't.
“The state of Louisiana is considered a low-access state from an obesity standpoint," said bariatric surgeon Dr. Shuna Levy, Medical Director of the Tulane Weight Loss Center. "So, there are many, many people who do not have insurance coverage for obesity treatments, including anti-obesity medications,”.
Since insurance doesn't pay the monthly cost of more than $1,000 for injections like Wegovy or Zepbound, people are turning to compounding pharmacies, paying only $200 to $300 a month.
There is no convenient preloaded pen. It's a vial and syringe you fill and inject with a tiny needle. Well now, drugmaker Eli Lilly is significantly lowering the prices of the two lowest doses of Zepbound by giving patients the option of getting it in vials without the pen.
“So, I would say it's about time they move to the vials, truly, because access and affordability are such huge barriers for patients and getting these medications,” said Dr. Levy.
You won't be able to go to your pharmacy now to get these vials and syringes.
There's a catch. You'll have to go through Lilly's telehealth platform, LillyDirect, and pay out-of-pocket prices in the $400 to $550 a month range. You can't use the manufacturer's discount coupons, and it will be shipped to you.
“They're still expensive, but to me, this signals the beginning of market competition in terms of them ultimately lowering the price and really improving access to care for these medications.”
The question is will this market competition now put pressure on the makers of Wegovy to do the same?
In some cases, it's still less costly to pay out-of-pocket for prescription injections at a compounding pharmacy.
Learn more about Lilly Direct here.
