Medicare can pay for obesity drugs like Wegovy in certain heart patients
Medicare can pay for the popular weight-loss drug Wegovy — as long as the patients using it also have heart disease and need to reduce the risk of future heart attacks, strokes and other serious problems, federal officials said Thursday.
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services issued new guidance that says Medicare Part D drug benefit plans — which are offered through private insurers — could cover anti-obesity drugs that are approved for an additional use.
The move could pave the way for thousands of new prescriptions, resulting in billions of dollars in increased spending, analysts have said.
In practice, the guidance opens the door to wider coverage of Wegovy, the brand name of Novo Nordisk’s obesity medication semaglutide. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration this month approved a label change that allows Wegovy to be used to reduce the risk of cardiovascular events in people who are overweight or have obesity and also have existing heart disease.
Related articles
- MPs today dismissed a 'virtue-signalling' claim that the UK owes Caribbean nations more than £200bil2024-05-22
Former U.S. diplomat calls for more communication
China and the United States should foster a stronger momentum of communications in various sectors t2024-05-22Xi Replies to Letter from Hong Kong Middle School Students
Contact Us HomeNewsHighlightACWF NewsSocietyWom2024-05-22Rural area shining example of development
A photo shows two boats parked outside a restaurant in Hengshanwu village of Anji county, Zhejiang p2024-05-22- PARIS (AP) — The Syrian soldiers came first, at night, for the son, Patrick, a 20-year-old psycholog2024-05-22
Global Digital Economy Conference 2022 held in Beijing
Photo taken on July 28, 2022 shows an unmanned vehicle for bank service during the Global Digital Ec2024-05-22
atest comment