The craze around pricey weight-loss drugs has many people clamoring for these treatments in company-sponsored health plans. While less than half of large employers currently cover the new generation of obesity drugs, an additional 18% say they’re considering adding them amid surging interest, according to preliminary findings from 1,062 firms surveyed by Mercer, a human-resources consulting firm.
Only 7% of large companies cover GLP-1s without limitations like “prior authorizations” which require doctors to do things like fill out extra forms in order for patients to get drugs. Demand for coverage of obesity drugs comes as companies’ benefit packages are evolving. Nearly two-thirds of employers said they were planning to make “enhancements” to their health and well-being offerings for next year, according to Mercer.