US EditionThe Case for Expanding Access to Weight-Loss Medications
Expanding access to GLP-1 and GIP/GLP-1 weight-loss drugs could save up to 42,027 lives annually by reducing obesity-related mortality, researchers say.
- Expanding access to weight-loss medications could prevent more than 40,000 deaths annually in the United States, according to a new study led by researchers at the Yale School of Public Health and the University of Florida.
- Currently, about 74% of Americans are overweight and 43% obese, yet high costs exceeding $1,000 monthly without insurance limit access to medications like Ozempic and Wegovy, researchers noted.
- If access expanded, the U.S. could see up to 42,027 fewer deaths annually, including approximately 11,769 among individuals with type 2 diabetes, a group particularly vulnerable to obesity complications.
- Under current conditions, around 8,592 lives are saved yearly, though Dr. Burton H. Singer, PhD, emphasized that "we must tackle the insurance and accessibility issues that prevent many people" from treatment.
- Addressing financial and coverage barriers could significantly reduce mortality, with Alison P. Galvani, Burnett and Stender Families Professor of Epidemiology at the Yale School of Public Health, calling expanded access a "crucial public health intervention.
15 Articles
15 Articles
Alison Sexton Ward: Expanding access to weight loss drugs rational (Opinion)
Alarmed by rising rates of obesity, public health officials have urged Americans for decades to eat better, move more and make healthier choices. Yet obesity rates kept rising, peaking at 40% of Americans in 2022. The decline since then is…
Expanding access to weight-loss drugs could save thousands of lives a year
Expanding access to new, highly effective weight-loss medications could prevent more than 40,000 deaths a year in the United States, according to a study. The findings highlight the critical need to remove existing barriers that are hindering people's access to effective weight loss treatments and impeding public health efforts to address the national obesity crisis, the researchers said. According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Pre…
The Times of Northwest Indiana
The Case for Expanding Access to Weight-Loss Medications
Alarmed by rising rates of obesity, public health officials have urged Americans for decades to eat better, move more and make healthier choices. Yet obesity rates kept rising, peaking at 40% of Americans in 2022. The decline since then is…
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