tap for article
___Trump Negotiating Deal With Ozempic Maker to Sell Some Weight-Loss Drugs for $149
Novo Nordisk, as well as Eli Lilly, would gain Medicare and Medicaid coverage for their blockbuster weight-loss drugs
Nov. 4, 2025 at 1:50 pm
Boxes of Wegovy and Ozempic.
The Trump administration is negotiating a deal with weight-loss drugmakers Eli Lilly LLY 0.87% and Novo Nordisk NOVO.B -0.03% that would allow the lowest doses of some of their obesity drugs to be sold to consumers at $149 for a month’s supply via TrumpRx, according to people familiar with the matter.
The deals would also result in Medicare and Medicaid covering the drugs for weight loss, the people said, which would be a boon to the companies.
The discussions are still ongoing but if agreements are finalized, Trump is expected to announce them Thursday morning at the White House, alongside pharmaceutical executives, the people said.
The agreement would allow Medicaid coverage for the popular but pricey drugs known as GLP-1s, including bestsellers Wegovy and Zepbound, to treat obesity. And it would require Medicare to cover the drugs for obese people who are also at high risk of other health problems, the people familiar with the matter said.
The lowest dose of Novo Nordisk’s Wegovy would be offered through TrumpRx at $149, the people said. The starting dose of Lilly’s Zepbound would be sold for $299, $50 less than the price that the company currently charges patients buying directly through Lilly’s direct-to-consumer website online, according to one of the people.
In addition, Lilly would sell the starting dose of its weight-loss pill, orforglipron, for $149 via TrumpRx if the drug, which is now in testing, is approved by the Food and Drug Administration.
Ozempic, the diabetes drug also made by Novo Nordisk that is already covered for many Medicare and Medicaid patients, may also be offered on TrumpRx, according to one of the people, who didn’t specify a potential price.
As part of the deal negotiations, Lilly is seeking a voucher from the FDA that would speed up review of the company’s weight-loss pill, the people said. The company has applied for the voucher, but it wasn’t clear if it would be awarded by Thursday. The voucher could potentially be very helpful for Lilly, allowing it to speed up FDA review of its application to just one to two months. Normally, the FDA takes anywhere from 6 to 10 months from accepting a new drug application to complete its review.
The potential agreements involve promises by the drugmakers to provide patients with “digital solutions” meant to encourage diet and exercise, people familiar said.
Currently, Medicare drug-benefit plans are permitted to cover the weight-loss drugs for nonobesity uses, such as reducing risk of heart attacks or sleep apnea. Few states cover the drugs for weight loss in their Medicaid programs.
A spokeswoman for Lilly said the company “is in discussions with the administration to further expand patient access, preserve innovation, and promote affordability of our medicines. We do not have specific details to share at this time.”
A spokeswoman for Novo Nordisk said the company “is engaged in constructive discussions with the Administration” and wants to make its drugs more affordable.
A Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services spokesperson said the president wants to make these products more affordable, and that when a deal is completed, the administration will announce it.
The drugs have list prices of between about $1,000 and $1,350 a month. The companies offer discounts to both insurers and patients, including cash prices of about $499 a month for patients using the companies’ direct-purchase services.
Trade publication Endpoints News earlier reported a deal was near.
The deal is part of the negotiations the Trump administration kicked off with major drugmakers in July in an attempt to lower U.S. drug costs with a policy known as “most favored nation” pricing. So far Pfizer, AstraZeneca and EMD Serono have announced deals with the administration.
Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has made fighting obesity and accompanying chronic diseases one of the primary goals of his Make America Healthy Again agenda. But in the past he has expressed skepticism about GLP-1s and last year criticized legislation to broaden coverage of the drugs, which he said would cost about $3 trillion.
CMS Administrator Mehmet Oz, a heart surgeon, persuaded Kennedy to back the coverage expansion by showing him scientific studies about how the medicines can prevent heart disease and diabetes, and data on the resulting cost savings to the federal government, people familiar with the matter said.
President Trump last month said the “fat loss drug,” or Novo Nordisk’s Ozempic, could be sold to Americans at $150 or “much lower,” but Oz quickly stepped in front of him and said the negotiations were still ongoing.
Write to Liz Essley Whyte at [email protected] and Peter Loftus at [email protected]
Who needs affordable, life saving medication when you can look a bit more skinny.
For a huge number of Americans, being “a bit more skinny” is literally life saving.
Weight related health conditions are a massive public health risk. A drug that ends that will save lives on a massive scale.
whatever reason anyone needs for a medication it’s between them and their doctor. non of my business.
there are legitimate reasons to use it, and the less legitimate reasons are still non of my business.
Ok, that is fair. But perhaps this is being used as a way to excuse non affordable healthcare on a larger scale. Maybe even a shady backdoor business deal.
with trump everything is shady, he probably just wants a bribe to facilitate whatever deal they want.
The point is that this drug is only getting special treatment because of it’s weight loss properties. Nobody involved with this cares about the legitimate reasons for taking ozempic.
People are free to take it how they want but there’s plenty of life-saving medications for illnesses that debilitate a LOT more people that’s more “deserving” of a reduced cost
no matter what trump does, it’s sketchy.
it is a popular drug that rich people use to lose weight. poor people need it too.
Also, I was pissed when Biden negotiated for a handful of medications, instead of setting a system to let the US negotiate for all medications. it was such a bare minimum policy (definitely not for people who need still overpriced insulin).