The crisis over GLP-1 out-of-pocket costs deepens—it’s time for health-care leaders to step up

Interest in GLP-1 medications like Ozempic will continue to grow given the multiple health conditions they can improve. (Credit: Steve Christo—Corbis/Corbis via Getty Images)

In recent years, the growing list of medical benefits for GIP and GLP-1 agonists (think Ozempic for diabetes or Zepbound for weight loss, among others) has caused demand to skyrocket.

Health-care professionals, eager to support their patients diagnosed with diabetes or obesity, are writing more prescriptions for these life-changing medications. In 2024 alone, prescription fills for FDA-approved weight loss medications Zepbound and Wegovy more than doubled. And with studies predicting staggering increases in the obesity rate by 2050, and the multiple conditions these drugs could help, interest in GLP-1s will continue to grow.