People starting on Wegovy have to take injections of gradually increasing strength before they reach the so-called maintenance dose that they stay on.
Finding Wegovy can become a part-time job for patients, said Dr. Diana Thiara, medical director of the weight management clinic at the University of California, San Francisco. One of Fitch’s patients, Mike Bouboulis, has taken Saxenda, Mounjaro or Ozempic, a Novo diabetes drug with the same active ingredient as Wegovy, since around 2019. It became much harder for him to find the drugs in the past year, after their popularity exploded.“They all know what you’re calling for, and they all have the same answer: ‘I don’t know. We’ll see tomorrow,’” said the 35-year-old small business owner who lives outside Boston.
The federal Medicare program for people age 65 and older doesn’t cover obesity medicines, but some privately run Medicare Advantage or Medigap plans do, according to Novo. Coverage from Medicaid programs for people with low incomes varies.Doctors and patients say many insurers have stopped covering Ozempic and Mounjaro outside their approved use for diabetes. Some insurers and employers don’t pay for Wegovy.
“For me, it’s either they have coverage through insurance, or they’re not taking it,” she said. “No one can afford it.”Advertisement
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