Private Insurance Gives Ozempic to 'Generously Entitled' Patients, Screwing the Rest

Big Pharma Gets Fatter On Diabetes, Obesity Drugs: Study

The University of Southern California has released a study showing that prescriptions for semaglutide, the active ingredient in Ozempic, Rybelsus, and Wegovy, have increased by a ridiculous 442% between 2021 and 2023. Wow, I guess all those doughnuts and couch-potatoing are finally catching up with people.

If only certain patient populations get access to these medications — those primarily with private insurance, more generous health plans — then there's a huge percentage of the U.S. population that isn't getting access to these medications.

Yeah, okay, Dr. Obvious. Thanks, Capt. Information, for that insightful quote.

Anyway, the study also found that patients on Medicaid and Medicare are getting screwed over, as usual, and can't afford these drugs that cost more than a small country's GDP. Meanwhile, Big Pharma is laughing all the way to the bank, with Medicare spending on just three of these drugs increasing from $57 million in 2018 to a whopping $5.7 billion in 2022. But hey, I'm sure the pharmacy benefit managers are getting their fair share of "rebates and discounts" too, so it's all good, right?

And don't even get me started on the federal spending forecast. If just 1 in 10 "eligible" adults take Wegovy to prevent a heart attack, it's gonna cost Medicare's Part D like, oh my god, $3 billion a year. I mean, who even has that kind of money? Oh right, the government for useless things like this, but not for important stuff like fixing my mom's basement after I "accidentally" flooded it.

Speaking of cost, these weight loss drugs are just another way to scam people. They cost patients around $1,350 a month, but guess how much they cost to make? $22. Twenty-freakin'-two dollars. What a ripoff. But hey, I guess that's the American way, right?

Source: Jama Network, Axios, KFF, USA TODAY