White House nears deal to lower prices for weight loss drugs

The Trump administration is preparing to announce a deal this week with Eli Lilly and Novo Nordisk to lower the price of their weight loss drugs, a person familiar with the plan said.

The Trump administration is expected to announce, as early as this week, a deal with drugmakers Eli Lilly and Novo Nordisk to lower the price of their weight loss drugs in exchange for limited Medicare coverage, according to two people familiar with the plan.

The deal would reduce the cost of the lowest doses of the blockbuster GLP-1 medications — Lilly’s Zepbound and Novo Nordisk’s Wegovy — to as little as $149 a month, the people said.

In return, Medicare would cover the drugs for some Medicare beneficiaries.

It’s not yet clear whether the $149 price would apply broadly across private and public insurance, or only for people paying in cash. It wasn’t immediately clear which Medicare patients would qualify for coverage. The details of the plan could still change.

The people confirmed the possible deal on the condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak publicly. The news was first reported by Endpoint News.