People probably have to be on Ozempic forever. But no one is ready for the bill. – By Shelby Livingston and Hilary Brueck (Insider) / June 2, 2023
- New GLP-1 drugs such as Ozempic and Mounjaro can help people lose a massive amount of weight.
- But once people stop taking the injections, they tend to regain weight.
- Some employers and startups see the drugs as short-term fixes, setting people up for failure.
Tara Rothenhoefer lost 176 pounds on Mounjaro, and she wants to keep the weight off. But she knows — from experience — that probably won’t be possible if she has to stop taking the drug once her manufacturer-issued coupons expire.
Rothenhoefer already tried going off Eli Lilly’s blockbuster weekly shot once before. Nearly immediately, her weight started to creep back up, she told Insider’s Gabby Landsverk.
Bill, a 63-year-old in San Francisco, faced the same issue. He lost 80 pounds on Wegovy through the startup Calibrate’s yearlong weight-management program. At the company’s suggestion, he tapered off the drug, expecting to maintain his weight loss. But his hunger rushed back, and he quickly regained 15 pounds.
