By Chris Prentice and Amina Niasse
NEW YORK, July 1 (Reuters) - Millions more Americans will qualify for obesity medications at just $50 a month under a new Medicare program starting on Wednesday, bringing the highly effective drugs to people aged 65 and older at an affordable price.
The U.S. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services' 18-month trial program will offer for the first time Novo Nordisk's Wegovy and Eli Lilly's Foundayo and Zepbound as a weight-loss treatment alone.
Medicare, which also covers people with disabilities, has been barred from weight-loss coverage and had paid for the drugs only when prescribed for co-conditions like cardiovascular issues and severe fatty liver disease. Now the program offers three pathways for some Medicare subscribers to qualify for coverage.
Eligible patients are estimated in the single-digit millions, a U.S. official said recently. Wall Street **** ysts estimate that will amount to billions of dollars in revenue for the drugmakers.
NEW YORK, July 1 (Reuters) - Millions more Americans will qualify for obesity medications at just $50 a month under a new Medicare program starting on Wednesday, bringing the highly effective drugs to people aged 65 and older at an affordable price.
The U.S. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services' 18-month trial program will offer for the first time Novo Nordisk's Wegovy and Eli Lilly's Foundayo and Zepbound as a weight-loss treatment alone.
Medicare, which also covers people with disabilities, has been barred from weight-loss coverage and had paid for the drugs only when prescribed for co-conditions like cardiovascular issues and severe fatty liver disease. Now the program offers three pathways for some Medicare subscribers to qualify for coverage.
Eligible patients are estimated in the single-digit millions, a U.S. official said recently. Wall Street **** ysts estimate that will amount to billions of dollars in revenue for the drugmakers.
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