Good morning, everyone, and welcome to the middle of the week. Congratulations on making it this far, and remember there are only a few more days until the weekend arrives. So keep plugging away. After all, what are the alternatives? While you ponder the possibilities, we invite you to join us for a delightful cup of stimulation. Our choice today is maple cinnamon French toast. Remember that no prescription is required — so no co-pay or rebate is involved. Meanwhile, here is the latest menu of tidbits to help you on your way. Have a wonderful day and please do stay in touch. …

The Trump administration had planned for insurers to provide cheap weight loss drugs to seniors through a Medicare pilot program, but insurers said no, so the government will instead cover the drugs outside of the Medicare Part D drug benefit, STAT explains. Last year, the Trump administration struck a deal with Eli Lilly and Novo Nordisk to lower the prices of their popular obesity drugs in exchange for expanding access to those drugs in Medicare and Medicaid. The hitch was that insurers had to agree to participate in the pilot, called BALANCE, even though they would likely have faced a financial strain by doing so. The drugmakers agreed to sell the treatments for $245 a month in Medicare and Medicaid, but Medicare promised that  beneficiaries would only pay $50 each month. And the pilot could only proceed if Medicare Part D drug plans covering at least 80% of enrollees agreed to participate.

Amazon is launching a program that provides access to GLP-1 treatments through its One Medical primary care arm, The Wall Street Journal notes. The program is designed to provide continuing medical supervision — allowing clinicians to monitor progress, adjust treatments, and address related health conditions — compared with one-off weight-management solutions from other providers. With the program, customers can get Novo Nordisk’s Wegovy and Eli Lilly’s Foundayo weight loss pills starting at $25 a month with insurance coverage, or $149 a month for cash-pay options. The cash-pay price for a starter dose aligns with those offered through programs from Hims & Hers Health, Walgreens, and Weight Watchers. Several companies in the weight loss market saw their stocks pull back after Amazon’s announcement. Shares of Hims & Hers closed down 4% at $29.76 on Tuesday. Weight Watchers declined 8.8%, and Novo Nordisk fell 2.6%.

Continue to STAT+ to read the full story…

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