Search Weight Loss Topics:




Jul 18

The next big thing in the weight loss drug boom has little to do with losing weight – Quartz

Lose Weight Comments Off on The next big thing in the weight loss drug boom has little to do with losing weight – Quartz

The next big thing in weight loss drugs isnt weight loss.

Wall Street Journal pharma reporter Peter Loftus made the case on Monday that the next wave of GLP-1 drug sales will be driven by the discovery of new medical uses for these slimming treatments.

Prime Day: The first half of Amazon's 48-hour sales event led to the biggest U.S. e-commerce day so far in 2024

The current market leaders of the GLP-1 space are Novo Nordisk, which produces Ozempic and Wegovy, and Eli Lilly, the maker of Mounjaro and Zepbound. GLP-1 drugs work by mimicking a gut hormone that regulates blood sugar and suppresses appetite. They were initially sold to treat Type 2 diabetes but their medical use has expanded to help combat obesity.

But with some health insurers still resistant to covering the treatments which can cost up to $1,300 a month solely for obesity, pharma companies are now testing these drugs for wider uses. Theyre being researched as possible treatments for heart, kidney, and liver diseases in effort to expand insurance coverage, and those efforts are starting to pay off.

The Food and Drug Administration expanded the approved use of Wegovy in March to include reducing heart risks for adults who are obese or overweight, allowing Medicare to cover the drug and opening access to Wegovy to about 3 million more Americans.

BMO Capital Markets analysts estimate that the new use of Wegovy for heart conditions will generate an additional $3.2 billion in annual sales for Novo Nordisk, Loftus reported.

In April, Eli Lilly announced that the drug behind Zepbound was found to help alleviate sleep apnea in patients with obesity in late-stage clinical trials. The pharma giant said its planning to seek approval from the FDA to expand the use of the drug to include treating the condition.

Jefferies analysts estimate this could increase sales for Zepbound by $5 billion.

It builds this wall of evidence, Derek Asay, senior vice president of value and access at Eli Lilly, told Loftus about trials looking at other uses for GLP-1 medications. It helps give that reason to believe theres more than weight loss here.

Unrelenting demand for for these drugs have transformed Novo Nordisk and Eli Lilly into the the largest pharma companies in the world, by market cap. Demand for these drugs has been so high that it has led to ongoing shortages and even boosted Denmarks GDP last year.

Morgan Stanley analysts anticipate the global market for these drugs will reach $105 billion by 2030.

Follow this link:
The next big thing in the weight loss drug boom has little to do with losing weight - Quartz

Related Posts

    Your Full Name

    Your Email

    Your Phone Number

    Select your age (30+ only)

    Select Your US State

    Program Choice

    Confirm over 30 years old

    Yes

    Confirm that you resident in USA

    Yes

    This is a Serious Inquiry

    Yes

    Message:



    matomo tracker