While weight loss drugs have been touted as a game-changer for the nation's obesity epidemic, many Americans who would benefit most from the medications often lack access, experts told the Los Angeles Times in an April 15 report.
Physicians who specialize in obesity said GLP-1 medications are not reaching people in racial and ethnic groups disproportionately affected by the condition, including Black and Latino Americans. The primary obstacles are the drugs' high cost and limited insurance coverage, which makes them inaccessible to many individuals, especially those from lower-income backgrounds.
A study published Jan. 29 in Plos One found Black patients with diabetes were half as likely to get GLP-1s than white patients in some areas of the U.S.
"If everybody had equal access, then this would be a way to help," Rocio Pereira, MD, chief of endocrinology at Denver Health, told the Times. "But without equal access — which is what we have now — it's likely this is going to increase the disparity we see."
Experts said there is an urgent need to address these disparities and ensure equitable access to obesity treatments for all Americans.
Read the full article here.