Few patients proceed Wegovy after a 12 months

A collection of injector pens for the Wegovy weight reduction drug are shown on this photo illustration in Chicago, Illinois, March 31, 2023.

Jim Vondruska | Reuters

Only around one-third of patients prescribed weight reduction drugs corresponding to Novo Nordisk‘s blockbuster injection Wegovy continued to take it a 12 months later — but total health-care costs for your complete group soared, in keeping with an evaluation shared with CNBC on Tuesday.

The annual health-care cost for patients before they began a weight reduction medication was $12,371 on average, said the evaluation from Prime Therapeutics, certainly one of the biggest pharmacy profit managers within the U.S.

That cost of care jumped by nearly 60% to $19,657 on average after patients began treatment, the evaluation said.

And a gaggle of patients within the evaluation who didn’t take a weight reduction drug saw their health-care costs decrease by 4% on average throughout the same time period.

The evaluation reviewed U.S. pharmacy and medical claims data for greater than 4,000 individuals with industrial health-care plans who received latest prescriptions for weight reduction drugs between January and December 2021.

Those patients had a diagnosis of obesity, prediabetes, or a body mass index of 30 or higher.

Weight reduction drugs are also often called GLP-1 agonists, which mimic a hormone produced within the gut to suppress an individual’s appetite.

The brand new findings highlight the hefty price tag of the highly popular weight-loss medicines, most of which may cost greater than $1,200 per 30 days out-of-pocket.

That cost may additionally be a burden for insured patients, who likely see co-payments and deductibles charged by the health plans for the drugs add up over time.

“While the industry is poised to see broader approval of GLP-1a drugs for weight reduction by the Food and Drug Administration within the near-term, our evaluation shows that a big, upfront financial investment is required when treating weight reduction with these drugs,” said Dr. Joseph Leach, Prime Therapeutics’ senior vice chairman and chief medical officer.

Pharmacy profit managers corresponding to Prime Therapeutics are middlemen who negotiate drug discounts with manufacturers on behalf of health insurers, large employers and others that contract them.

The corporate’s evaluation also suggests that adherence to treatment with Wegovy or similar drugs is poor beyond the one-year mark, which is when patients typically see substantial weight reduction.

Wegovy, for instance, results in 15% weight reduction after 68 weeks, in keeping with clinical trials on the drug.

Prime Therapeutics’ evaluation doesn’t indicate why patients stopped taking weight reduction drugs.

But many users have said that the continued shortages of Wegovy have forced them to discontinue treatment.

Novo Nordisk’s clinical trials have show that some patients stop treatment as a consequence of unpleasant negative effects like gastrointestinal issues.

Novo Nordisk didn’t immediately reply to CNBC’s request for comment on Prime Therapeutics’ evaluation.

The Danish company’s stock price fell nearly 3% on Tuesday after Reuters first reported the evaluation.

Pharmaceutical corporations corresponding to Eli Lilly and Pfizer began zeroing in on the load loss industry after Wegovy and diabetes drug Ozempic catapulted to the national highlight in recent times.

Social media influencers, Hollywood celebrities and billionaire tech mogul Elon Musk have reportedly used the favored injections to do away with unwanted weight.

But experts say the medicines may further perpetuate a dangerous weight-reduction plan culture that idealizes weight reduction and thinness.