White House deal sets $245 monthly Medicare price for Ozempic, Wegovy, Mounjaro and Zepbound

On Nov. 6, 2025, the White House announced agreements with Eli Lilly and Novo Nordisk that set a $245 monthly price for injectable Ozempic, Wegovy, Mounjaro and Zepbound in Medicare and Medicaid, a $50 monthly Medicare copay, and about $350 a month for the same drugs on a new government purchasing site called TrumpRx ^[1][2][3][4]. The deal would also let Medicare pay for Wegovy and Zepbound for obesity for the first time ^[1][2][3].

What the prices are

The $245 Medicare price applies to all doses and indications of Ozempic, Wegovy (semaglutide), Mounjaro and Zepbound (tirzepatide) ^[1][3]. State Medicaid programs can get the same price for covered doses, but states have to opt in, so some may not ^[1][3][4]. Medicare beneficiaries will pay a $50 copay per month ^[2][3][4].

On TrumpRx, which is set to launch in January 2026, the White House said Ozempic and Wegovy would fall from about $1,000 and $1,350 a month to $350, while Zepbound and orforglipron, if approved, would fall from $1,086 to an average of $346 ^[3]. The American Journal of Managed Care describes an average monthly price of $350 for vials, a discount of about 30% from the $499 the two companies charge cash-paying patients on their own direct-to-consumer platforms ^[1]. Whether versions using autoinjectors will be sold on TrumpRx has not been disclosed ^[1].

Starting doses of oral GLP-1 drugs, if approved, were put at $150 a month by the White House, AMCP and AJMC ^[1][2][3]. CNBC reported $149 ^[4]. For oral orforglipron, if approved, Lilly said the lowest dose would be $149 and higher doses up to $399 ^[2].

During the announcement, Chris Klomp, director of Medicare at the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, said manufacturers agreed to bring the price of injectable GLP-1s down to the Medicare and Medicaid level over the next 24 months ^[1]. A senior administration official said the $350 starting doses on TrumpRx would "trend down" to $245 over two years ^[4].

Lilly also said it would cut $50 from prices on its own LillyDirect platform, where the Zepbound multi-dose pen would run $299 a month at the lowest dose and up to $449 at higher doses ^[2][4].

The agreements cover other products too. Novo Nordisk will provide insulin products including NovoLog and Tresiba at $35 per month of supply, and Lilly will provide migraine drug Emgality at $299 per pen and diabetes drug Trulicity at $389 a month ^[1][3].

Who could get coverage

Medicare covers about 66 million people ^[4]. The new obesity coverage would run through a pilot program designed to reach most Part D beneficiaries ^[1][4], starting in mid-2026 ^[4]. A senior administration official said about 10% of Medicare beneficiaries would be eligible, in three groups: people who are overweight with a body mass index above 27 plus prediabetes or established cardiovascular disease; people with obesity (BMI above 30) plus uncontrolled hypertension, kidney disease or heart failure; and people with a BMI above 35 ^[4]. The official said the administration was constraining access compared with the FDA-approved labels, which cover people with obesity or with overweight plus one related condition ^[4].

Why it matters for patients

Medicare has been barred by statute from covering drugs for weight loss, and the Biden administration's proposal to reinterpret that rule was dropped in the 2026 final rule ^[1]. Eli Lilly and Novo Nordisk already sell most doses of Wegovy and Zepbound directly to cash-paying patients at $499 a month ^[1], and list prices have run roughly $1,000 to $1,350 ^[4].

The reach of the deal depends on details that are not yet settled. Medicaid coverage depends on each state opting in ^[4]. Medicare's obesity coverage is narrower than the drugs' approved labels ^[4]. Insured patients may still pay less through their own plan's copay or coinsurance than through TrumpRx ^[1]. Thirteen states currently cover GLP-1s for obesity, according to KFF ^[1].

Several questions remain unanswered, including the formula used to calculate most-favored-nation prices, the reference countries used to set them, and guidance to state Medicaid programs on implementation ^[1]. Seven senators, including Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren, sent a letter to Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. seeking details and raising concerns about how the prices interact with the 340B program and Medicare drug price negotiation ^[1].

What happens next

TrumpRx is scheduled to launch in January 2026 ^[1][4]. Medicare's obesity coverage is expected to begin in mid-2026 ^[4]. Semaglutide is in the next round of Medicare price negotiations, and new prices for the 15 selected drugs are expected to be unveiled by Nov. 30 ^[4].