Twelve percent of all US adults have used a weight-loss drug like Ozempic
Around 12%, or one in eight, US adults have now tried a weight-loss drug like Wegovy / Ozempic, Zepbound or Mounjaro, according to a new poll, and about 6% are currently taking one. Over 40% of adults in the US are now obese.
The majority of those using the drugs (61%) are using them to treat a chronic condition like diabetes or heart disease. Just over 40% are diabetics.
A little over a quarter of users have heart disease. In March, Wegovy became the first weight-loss medication to be given FDA approval as a treatment to reduce the risk of heart disease and stroke.
Less than a quarter, or 22%, are taking the drugs because they have been diagnosed as being overweight, but 38% say they take the drugs to lose weight.
Weight-loss drugs like Ozempic can cost over $1000 a month without insurance coverage, rebates or discount coupons. Over half of those who reported taking the drugs said they found it “difficult” to afford them, with over one in five (22%) saying they found it “very difficult.”
Six in ten (61%) of adults said Medicare should cover weight-loss drugs for people who are overweight or obese. This response was shared among all age groups and political orientations.
The vast majority of users (79%) said they’d been prescribed the drugs, with 11% saying they’d got them online, 10% from a medical spa or aesthetic center and 2% from somewhere else.
In recent months, as publicity for and use of these new “miracle” drugs has grown tremendously, more attention has been drawn to their side effects. Psychiatric issues, hormonal problems including reduced testosterone and loss of libido, inhalation of the contents of the stomach, and even permanent lifelong diarrhea have been reported.
Tens of thousands of people are now suing the manufacturers of Wegovy/Ozempic (Novo Nordisk) and Mounjaro (Eli Lilly) for the physical damages they claim to have suffered.
Huge payouts, in the hundreds of millions or even billions, may be necessary to stem the flood of claims.
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