Staff Reports
The Biden administration is gearing up to bolster big Pharma’s bottom line with a new proposal that seems to have been lifted straight from the handbook of fascistic corporate welfare. Fresh off their win for pushing semaglutide and similar drugs in 2021, the pharmaceutical powerhouses have convinced the government to expand coverage of their weight-loss drugs, like Ozempic and Mounjaro, in taxpayer-funded healthcare plans like Medicare and Medicaid. For those keeping score, this is corporate America shaking hands with big government, as the state is all too eager to subsidize drug gobbling.
Stock prices for Eli Lilly and Novo Nordisk are clearly riding high on the news that the federal government is ready to redefine these pricey injections as critical medications for tackling obesity. Sure, they come with a price tag north of $1,000 a month, but who’s counting taxpayer dollars when there’s a “growing consensus” among the so-called experts that obesity is a chronic condition? That’s right; when things get tough for Uncle Sam’s budget, the solution often seems to be throwing billions at pharmaceutical companies.
🚨 Major Health Reform Incoming:
• Biden admin to cover weight loss drugs under Medicare/Medicaid
• Drugs include Wegovy, Ozempic, Mounjaro
• Costs to fall from $1K/month to affordable rates
• $25B Medicare, $11B Medicaid over 10 years pic.twitter.com/DeqbQOAJIU— Los Angeles Magazine (@LAmag) November 26, 2024
The anticipated changes could cost Medicare and Medicaid around $24.8 billion and $14.8 billion over the next decade, respectively. While bureaucrats over at CMS peddle the notion that this move is all about tackling serious health risks linked to obesity, one has to wonder: has anyone thought about promoting personal responsibility instead? Apparently not. Instead, it’s full steam ahead to ensure Americans have access to lifelong pharmaceutical solutions, because who needs lifestyle changes when a needle will do, right?
As the bureaucratic machine cranks, new clients are lined up for these high-priced drugs. The glaring truth is that many would prefer to inject their way to “health” rather than consider an actual lifestyle change. The pharmaceutical industry practically drools at the thought of it. Meanwhile, the power-hungry government employees stand ready to disperse taxpayer money as they eye lucrative private-sector jobs awaiting them after retirement. Former public servants with cushy board positions seem perfectly content to endorse this cushy arrangement.
With a mere pen stroke, it appears the government is happy to greenlight the continuation of this pharmaceutical free-for-all, combining the worst elements of state and corporate synergy. Yet there’s a silver lining; if they can create this bureaucratic monstrosity through one flick of the wrist, there’s hope that a similar swipe could dismantle it just as swiftly, bringing both a dramatic end to this financial folly and perhaps initiating a conversation about accountability and individual health choices in America.
