Weight Loss Medication News

The rising cost of weight loss drugs has prompted many consumers to turn to sketchy websites that advertise the medications for a much lower price. However, many of these sites are actually illegal pharmacies, and consumers are often scammed for money, or receive the wrong kind of drug. 

In a step towards making the drugs more affordable, Eli Lilly announced that its weight loss drug, Zepbound, will be available at a much lower cost for patients. 

Additionally, the company will begin producing the drug in single-use vials rather than the auto-injector pens. This decision will also increase manufacturing speeds, getting consumers the drugs much faster than before. 

“We are excited to share that Zepbound single-dose vials are now here, further delivering on our promise to increase supply of Zepbound in the U.S.,” said Patrik Jonsson, executive vice president at Eli Lilly. 

“These new vials not only help us meet the high demand for our obesity medicine, but also broaden access for patients seeking a safe and effective treatment option. In a clinical study, the 5 mg maintenance dose helped patients achieve an average of 15% weight loss after 72 weeks of treatment and has been a powerful tool for millions of people with obesity to lose weight and keep it off.” 

Increasing access at a lower price

To help more consumers gain access to weight loss drugs, Eli Lilly has created a self-pay pharmacy, LillyDirect. 

To be eligible for the program, consumers need to have a valid Zepbound prescription from their doctor. Once they receive that, they’re free to purchase the drug directly from the manufacturer. Only patients with valid, on-label prescriptions will be sent the medication. 

LillyDirect will be offering patients both the 2 mg and 5 mg doses of Zepbound in four-week supplies. The 2 mg dose will run consumers $399, and the 5 mg dose will be $529. These prices are in line with what Eli Lilly’s savings program charges patients whose insurance won’t cover the drug. 

Comparatively, a month's supply of Zepbound’s injector pens costs over $1,000 without insurance. The new LillyDirect program will save consumers 50% or more on the weight loss drug. 

“Despite obesity being recognized as a serious chronic illness with long-term consequences, it’s often misclassified as a lifestyle choice, resulting in many employers and the federal government excluding medications like Zepbound from insurance coverage,” Jonsson said. 

“Outdated policies and lack of coverage for obesity medications create an urgent need for more innovative solutions. Bringing Zepbound single-dose vials to patients will help more people living with obesity manage this chronic condition. We will also continue to advocate for a system that better aligns with science.” 

While there has been no shortage of Ozempic-related scams, a new study is exploring other risks consumers face when ordering weight loss drugs online. 

Based on findings from the report that was recently published in JAMA, nearly 43% of all online pharmacies selling weight loss drugs were illegal operations. 

“This qualitative study found that semaglutide products are actively being sold without prescriptions by illegal online pharmacies, with vendors shipping unregistered and falsified products,” the researchers wrote. 

Know the risks

For the study, the researchers searched through both Google and Bing for websites that advertised weight loss drugs without prescriptions in the summer of 2023. 

Once they narrowed down those sites, the researchers purchased semaglutide samples and put them to the test. They tested the products for active ingredients, sterility, as well as authenticity.

The team compared the products they received with the International Pharmaceutical Federation’s visual inspection checklist to determine if the packaging of the samples they received matched the name-brand packaging. 

While nearly 320 online pharmacies popped up in the initial search, 134 sites were found to be illegal pharmacies. This translates to over 42% of sites turning out to be illegitimate. 

The researchers went on to purchase six semaglutide samples, only half of which were delivered. The remaining three samples ended up being scam sites, where the vendors reached out to the researchers looking for more money before shipment. 

Packaging and ingredient issues

When looking into the samples that showed up, the researchers identified issues with both the packaging and the ingredients. Not only were there errors in the labeling and authorization on the packaging, but the amount of semaglutide in each of the samples far exceeded the amount on the label. 

The samples contained nearly 40% more semaglutide than was advertised on the packaging. Taking too much of the drugs can have adverse effects on consumers’ health and wellness. 

This study highlights the importance of consumers receiving prescriptions from trusted medical professionals – not from advertisements they come across online.

The White House may be trying to ban menthol cigarettes, but researchers in Japan have found a new way to use menthol – in weight loss.

By tweaking menthol, researchers say they might help people lose weight possibly at a far more reasonable price than Ozempic. They say it might also fight inflammation.

What's menthol got to do with it? 

Menthol has had success in other health situations like skin rashes and Researchers at the Tokyo University of Science decided to push it a little further and see what happened.

With the goal of supercharging menthol’s good stuff, they mixed menthol with the building blocks of protein to make special molecules called menthyl esters. 

And, guess what – it worked! At least in a lab. The researchers came away with their menthyl esters boxes all checked off. Where the jacked-up menthol worked wonders was inflammation, basically chilling out the overactive alarms when inflammation goes too far in the body. 

The big high-five came when the researchers found that these new menthyl esters had the ability to crawl inside cells and work some magic by flipping a switch that controls both inflammation and fat storage. And here's the kicker: the esters seemed to do this differently from other treatments, which called for another high-five.

Hickory Dickory Dock, the mouse jumped on the scale

Mixing up cells in a test tube and watching how they react is one thing, but the researchers knew that if they didn’t move their notion to something more human-like, it was all for naught. They weren’t about to try this out on a real human, but since mice have proven to be worthy tests, they fed these menthyl esters to those who had been fed a super fatty diet or made to have gut inflammation.

Compared to the other mice, those given menthyl esters gained less weight and had less inflammation – and this means it might work for real-life problems, not just cells in a dish.

Don't get too excited yet

Whatever you do, don’t go buy a bunch of Life Savers or Altoids or Salem cigarettes and start binging on them, hoping to lose weight. More research is needed before this turns into a pill you can take.

It is just a start, but it’s also a promising lead, especially because it comes from menthol, something natural we already know is safe. And any drug that is “safe” can be a good thing.

In September 2023, Costco announced its healthcare partnership with Sesame, which was designed to offer members access to healthcare – regardless of their insurance status – at a discounted rate. 

Now, the membership club has announced a new weight loss program exclusively for its members. 

In addition to receiving nutrition guides and recommendations, clinical consultations, and an individualized plan, those who are eligible can also receive prescriptions for weight loss drugs like Ozempic and Wegovy. 

Meaghan Hafner, vice president of health care insights & strategy at Human8, a consultative agency focused on driving customer centricity, told ConsumerAffairs that the move will increase competition among health care providers and the retail health care landscape. 

"With this greater competition comes greater options for consumers, and more opportunity for consumers to feel supported in their needs," Hafner said. "For brands anywhere in the health care landscape, it is vital that they understand what matters to consumers so they can be in lock-step when developing strategies and offerings that meet those needs." 

How does it work? 

The new weight loss program is available exclusively for Costco members and is designed to offer consumers an individualized weight loss plan. 

Members will have the freedom to select a weight loss doctor or specialist to work with throughout the program. Once they do, they can schedule a meeting with their provider to discuss weight loss goals, health history, and other relevant information about the program. 

If the specialist decides that a weight loss drug is appropriate, they’ll send off the prescription. Once members receive their prescription, they can begin treatment, while also having ongoing access to and support from their weight loss specialist. 

In addition to increasing access to weight loss drugs, the subscription plan will offer members advice on nutrition and exercise tailored specifically to their goals and needs. They will also have unlimited access to their specialists to ask any questions, help plan meals, discuss different treatment options, and more. 

"We are seeing a shift in consumers' mindset around health and wellness, and that they want to have a leading role in their personal health," Hafner told ConsumerAffairs. "With this increased accessibility, consumers are able to take a more leading role in and ownership in their health." 

Subscription details

Interested members can sign up for a three-month subscription, which will cost $179, or $60 per month. With the subscription, members receive:

• A video consultation with a weight loss doctor or specialist 

• GLP-1 or other weight loss medications, as appropriate

• Insurance coordination for prescription authorization

• Ongoing support via unlimited messaging, nutrition, and exercise guidance

• Lab orders, if needed

The cost of prescriptions and any necessary lab work are not included in the subscription price. Sesame can work with consumers to assist with any pre-authorizations needed by their insurance companies to cover medication costs. 

However, members without insurance will have to pay full price for the drugs. On the website, Sesame explains that these drugs can run consumers anywhere from $950 to $1,600 per month out of pocket.