Divides remain over weight loss drug access
More clinics emerge to capitalize on demand
By: Binghui Huang
Indianapolis Start
USA Today Network
..... At this point, Amanda Spaulding is desperate to have some control over her heath and weight.
.....
She's tried nearly everything but surgery. there was Adipex, an amphetamine that made her lose her appetite: therapy, to manage her binge eating habits; and a rotation of fad diets and exercises.
..... So when drugs Ozempic and Mouniaro came to market, Spaulding asked her doctor if she was a candidate for them. she was quickly disappointed. Despite her chronic health issues and more than 100 pounds that stand between her and her goal weight, her insurance would not cover the drug. Spaulding had to find another way.
..... "I either don't do anything and go down the road of all the medications and hospital stays or even early death or I can try this medication," she said, noting she has a family history of heart disease and a risk of developing diabetes.
..... The emergence of drugs like Ozempic and Mounjaro to help Type 2 diabetics has been met with a broad demand for prescriptions.
..... But the drugs have cause divides in the medical world and a cascade of lawsuits over access and safety: Who should be taking them and who should be providing them?
..... Many people are looking for more affordable and accessible alternatives, spurring clinics to open across the U.S. that will teat people rejected by doctors and insurance companies.
..... These business often offer cheaper monthly options through lower dosages or through pharmacies that make drugs using the active ingredients in the brand name drugs at significantly lower prices.
..... While these compounded mediations are legal, the do not come with the approval of the Food and Drug Administration unlike the brand name versions, which are manufactured under specific conditions. In response, pharmaceutical companies have sued and doctors are warning against using these alternatives.
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Primer Weight Loss, opened last year, [2023] advertising prices of $300 a month for low-dose Ozempic and $375 a month for low-dose Mounjaro. those price ago up with the dosage but are still more affordable than paying full price for those whose insurance that will not cover the drugs.
..... Thomas Hilbert, the owner of Premier Weight Loss, was a health care investor who pivoted to clinic owner when he saw the date on the effectiveness of Ozempic and Mounjaro.
..... "I was away by Mounjaro's demand on the weight loss market," he said.
..... Spaulding sued Premier Weight Loss at first, which offered her a lower dose of the brand name drug at a cheaper prices. But when she needed a higher dose, she had to switch to using semaglutied at another clinic for a fraction of the cost.
..... Few regulations and standards exist for weight loss businesses, paving way for eager operators to cut corners, skip medical screenings, sue knock-off drugs, through out medical guidance and even sue treatments (like using the fertility drug called human chorion gonadotropin as a diet drug) that have proven to be ineffective - all in the interest of helping people use weight quickly.
..... Many doctors and pharmaceutical companies accuse insurance companies of denying people critical health care by not coving the costly drugs.
..... Meanwhile, body positivity activists charge doctors are unnecessarily pushing these drugs on their patients without adequately warning them about serious side effects. Then there are the many patients who want an easy way to erase the few pounds they carry.
..... And controversy has surrounded the weight loss industry for decades.
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The billion dollar industry has failed generations after generalizations of weight loss seekers, despite promise after promise of breakthrough medication. and throughout, the U.S. population has grown heavier and heavier, topping out at 2 in 5 adults today are considered an unhealthy weight by the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
..... Medial experts argue that in order for a person to enjoy long-term weight loss success, he or she must participate in a comprehensive lifestyle overhaul not just pop a pill.
..... Medically supervised wight loss should include screening for eating disorders, exercise regiments, mental health therapy to address toxic eating or habits, and lessons in nutrition in addition to the medication, said Dr. Igor Wanko,Mboumi, a barbaric surgeon at Franciscan health in Indianapolis.
..... "Medications is seen to be an adjunct, not the answer," he said. "People get into trouble when they try to see it as the answer."
..... Specifically, health care providers and advocates worry that:
*Two of the most commonly use cheaper substitutes, semaglutide and Tirzepatide, have been controversial. Pharmaceutical giants Nove Nordisk and Lilly have sued over the sue of these drugs.
..... Doctors also warn against their sue. but clinic operators say they're offering a safe affordable option for those in desperate need.
* some clinics don't screen out people whom doctors decline to treat with these drugs. Most doctors only prescribe these drugs for patients who meet a weight threshold or ahve anotehr medical sisue that qualifes them.
* Some clinics claim that people can go off the drug after they've lost weight and maintain the weight loss. however, studies have found that people who go off the medication will regain weight. While some patients are seeing the results they want, the long-term efficacy is still uncertain.
..... Doctors say this will have to be a lifelong drug for patients to maintain weight. And it's not just the price that worries patine st about making long-term commitment to the drug. Common side effects include nausea, constipation and diarrhea.
..... A lawsuit field last August [2023] by Ozempic and Mounjaro suers accused the two pharmaceutical companies of failing to warn patient about severe stomach problems, including stomach paralysis that prevents food from going from the stomach to the small intestines.