An estimated 5.9 million Medicare enrollees are shut out of the program's $50 monthly GLP-1 price precisely because they carry a diagnosis the drugs are approved to treat, a quantified figure that had not previously been attached to the pilot's exclusion rules.
The number comes from KFF Health News reporting on the Bridge program published this week. The GLP-1 Bridge applies only to beneficiaries using the drugs solely for weight loss. Anyone with a condition the FDA has approved a GLP-1 to treat, including Type 2 diabetes and moderate to severe obstructive sleep apnea, is routed back to their standard Part D plan, where copays can run into the hundreds of dollars a month.
