From Bloomberg Law, by Madison Muller:
- Ozempic, and other GLP-1 receptor agonists, are diabetes medications that have become popular for weight loss.
- Now, there is evidence that they have other more far-reaching benefits too:
- They may have a protective effect on the heart, liver and kidneys.
- They may combat substance abuse or even Alzheimer’s disease.
- Wegovy has been shown to reduce the risk of heart attacks and strokes by 20% in overweight people with a history of heart issues.
- As a result, these medications may disrupt many different industries.
- For example, when the manufacturer of Ozempic announced on Oct. 10 that its effectiveness in kidney disease was so conclusive that it was stopping a trial early, it sparked a $3.6 billion selloff in shares of dialysis providers Fresenius Medical Care AG and DaVita Inc.
- These drugs may also disrupt the health insurance market. Even if approved for new uses, these drugs are very expensivThe list price for Ozempic is about $900 a month, and for Wegovy it’s more than $1,000.