Want weight loss medication? You may need to change your lifestyle first.

Key Facts

The University of Texas system, one of the largest employers in the state with more than 116,000 workers, dropped coverage for weight loss drugs in September after seeing costs for the medications rise from about $1.5 million to $5 million a month over an 18-month period ended in May, according to the university system’s benefits guidebook.
The University of Texas, in explaining why it dropped coverage, noted in its employee guidebook that less than 46 percent of people using GLP-1s remain on the medications long-term, which “equates to a significant cost to the plan with less-than-desirable compliance with medication and treatment protocols.”
That’s why the State Health Plan Board of Trustees in late October voted for a moratorium on covering the drugs for new users, which Folwell said will allow the state to evaluate whether it wants to permanently cut coverage for weight-loss drugs.
About 4 in 10 Americans are obese, according to the CDC, with new research predicting that number could jump to half of Americans by 2030, creating a potentially huge market for these drugs, said Cynthia Cox, vice president at KFF.