April 02, 2026
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The FDA has just approved an oral GLP-1 medication from Eli Lilly, which also makes the injectable weight-loss drug Zepbound, above.
The approval of a second GLP-1 weight-loss pill Wednesday adds another medication to the market for people with obesity and diabetes. But whether these new options will make it easier and cheaper to obtain these drugs is still not clear, a Temple University obesity expert said.
Eli Lilly announced Wednesday that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration had approved its GLP-1 oral medication, Foundayo, the second weight-loss pill to come to market in recent months. The FDA approved Novo Nordisk's Wegovy pill in December. These oral medications expand the GLP-1 landscape of blockbuster weight-loss drugs, including Wegovy, Ozempic and Zepbound, that have had seismic changes on obesity treatment in recent years.
"We haven't had medications that could produce the weight losses that these (GLP-1s) are doing," said David B. Sarwer, director of Temple University’s Center for Obesity Research and Education within the Barnett College of Public Health. "And so, if we're thinking optimistically, the potential is tremendous, but we need to figure out the best ways that we can make these medications affordable for patients, not only in the short term but the long term."
People with obesity who are candidates for the injectable versions of GLP-1s have faced inconsistent insurance coverage, high co-pays and out-of-pocket costs — despite an agreement the Trump administration and pharmaceutical companies reached in November to make these medications more affordable. The companies agreed to sell Wegovy and Zepbound to Medicare and Medicaid for significantly below the longstanding $1,000 per month list prices.
Eli Lilly's new oral version, Foundayo, will start at $25 per month for people with commercial insurance and $149 a month for people who pay out-of-pocket. The Wegovy pill is at a similar price point
Both pills are taken once a day. The Wegovy pill has to be taken first thing in the morning before food. Foundayo has fewer restrictions and can be taken any time of day. And both pills have been shown to help people lose an average of between about 12% and 16% of their body weight — close to the results seen with injectable forms of the medications.
But for many people interested in taking the new oral GLP-1s, the out-of-pocket costs can still be "several $100 a month," Sarwer said. "Yes, there are coupon programs, and yes, there might be discounts if you're in this plan. But from a consumer's perspective, all of that gets very confusing very quickly."
Prices for the injectable GLP-1s have been in flux since the November agreement. And for people from lower socioeconomic groups, who have higher obesity rates, prices of the new pills may still be prohibitive, Sarwer said.
"Providers also are a bit handcuffed in not only kind of landing in the spot of which medication and which formulation is right for this patient, but what is insurance going to cover, and how long is it going to be covered, and what's the co-pay going to be," Sawyer said. "And so I think this becomes for patients much more difficult than it obviously needs to be."
