CDC: 26.5% of US adults with diabetes used GLP-1 injectables in 2024

About 26.5% of U.S. adults with diagnosed diabetes used a GLP-1 injectable in 2024, according to a data brief published in August 2025 by the National Center for Health Statistics. That works out to an estimated 6.9 million adults ^[1][2].

The figures come from the 2024 National Health Interview Survey, a household survey of the U.S. civilian noninstitutionalized population. A respondent counted as a user if they had diagnosed diabetes and answered yes to the question, "Other than insulin, are you taking any injectable medications to lower your blood sugar or lose weight?" Interviewers could read a list of examples: Ozempic, Wegovy, Saxenda, Victoza, Trulicity, Mounjaro and Byetta ^[2].

That definition matters. The brief groups several injectable drugs under one label and does not report use by individual product, so the 26.5% figure is not specific to semaglutide or any other single medication ^[1][2].

Use varied sharply by age

GLP-1 injectable use climbed with age from 25.3% among adults ages 18 to 34 to 33.3% among those ages 50 to 64, then fell to 20.8% among adults 65 and older. NCHS described the pattern as a significant trend, and said the differences between the 35-to-49 and 50-to-64 groups compared with the 65-and-older group were significant ^[1][2].

Use was similar for women (27.2%) and men (25.9%), a difference NCHS did not call significant ^[1].

By race and Hispanic origin, 31.3% of Hispanic adults with diagnosed diabetes used GLP-1 injectables, along with 26.5% of Black non-Hispanic adults and 26.2% of White non-Hispanic adults. Asian non-Hispanic adults were significantly lower at 12.1% ^[1][2].

Use ranged from 24.2% among adults with family incomes from 100% to less than 200% of the federal poverty level to 29.0% among those at 400% of the poverty level or higher. The brief states that differences across income groups were not significant ^[1][2].

Use rose with body mass index

GLP-1 injectable use was higher at higher body mass index levels: 16.7% among adults with diagnosed diabetes at a healthy weight, 22.2% among those in the overweight range and 32.4% among those with obesity. The estimate for underweight adults did not meet NCHS reliability standards and was not published ^[1][2].

Adults already taking other diabetes medication were also more likely to use a GLP-1 injectable. Among those taking insulin, 31.3% also used one, compared with 24.5% of those not taking insulin. Among those taking oral glucose-lowering medications, 28.1% also used a GLP-1 injectable, compared with 22.2% of those who did not ^[1][2].

The brief also cites earlier research showing a 155% increase in GLP-1 injectable use among adults with type 2 diabetes between 2018 (7.6%) and 2022 (19.4%), based on the Medical Expenditure Panel Survey, while spending on these medications rose by more than 500% from 2018 to 2023 ^[2].

Why it matters for patients

These numbers give patients a sense of how common GLP-1 injectables have become among adults who already have a diabetes diagnosis — roughly one in four, and one in three in the 50-to-64 age group ^[1][2].

Several things the brief does not cover are worth knowing. The survey question asked about injectables used "to lower your blood sugar or lose weight," so the data cannot separate people taking a GLP-1 for blood sugar control from those taking one for weight loss ^[2]. It also does not address insurance coverage, out-of-pocket cost, side effects, how long people stayed on treatment, or health outcomes — none of those are measured here ^[1][2].

Because the data cover only adults with diagnosed diabetes, they say nothing about people without diabetes who use GLP-1 medications for weight loss. The estimates are self-reported and exclude people living in institutions such as nursing homes, as well as military personnel on active duty ^[1][2].

NCHS has not disclosed when comparable figures for 2025 will be released. The estimates here describe one year, 2024, and cannot show whether use is still rising ^[1][2].