GLP-1 weight-loss drugs are revolutionary – and they’re exposing America’s healthcare crisis | David A Kessler

The struggle to obtain these medications illustrates the dangerous mess the US healthcare system has become, writes the former FDA chief

The American healthcare system is broken. It is too complicated and too hard for people to get the care and medications they need. More than 70% of Americans feel it has failed them. The level of frustration and anger directed at this system is palpable. In fact, what is increasingly apparent is there is no “system” at all.

New GLP-1 drugs – a class that includes Wegovy and Ozempic – have revolutionized our understanding of weight loss, but they have also illuminated the flaws in our healthcare delivery. People who have struggled with their weight for their entire lives are rightfully frustrated when they learn there is now a medication that can help them but they cannot access it. I carry three health insurance plans and none of them would cover payment for the drug. Faced with this reality, and my increasing percentage of body fat, I decided to pay out of pocket – over $1,000 a month – for a GLP-1 to treat my prediabetes. For most people, that is not an option.