Letter to the Editor: Use of obesity medications should be decided by doctors and patients

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention refers to obesity as “a serious, common and costly chronic disease.”  

Treatment of a serious disease with an FDA approved medication should not be optional  for insurance companies to cover. 

Obesity is a disease that impacts much more than a person’s weight. It is a  disease that affects two in five adults in the U.S. and accounted for nearly $173 billion in  medical expenditures in 2019. 

In 2022, the CDC reported that all U.S. states and territories had an obesity  prevalence higher than 20%. Sadly, West Virginia was one of three states in the country  that had an obesity prevalence of 40% or greater, with West Virginia having the highest  adult obesity rate in the U.S. 

This condition puts patients at risk for numerous other serious health conditions, including heart disease and stroke, high blood pressure, prediabetes and Type 2  diabetes, sleep apnea, some cancers, osteoarthritis, liver disease, depression and gout. 

Many of these diseases are ranked in the CDC’s top 10 causes of death in the  U.S. Treating obesity before a patient develops any of its associated diseases will save  lives. 

Use of the medication will ultimately decrease health care expenditures related  to not only obesity, but the diverse group of conditions and health complications  associated with obesity. 

Currently, many insurances cover these medications only if a patient develops  Type 2 diabetes. Physicians have a chance of preventing Type 2 diabetes only if these  medications are used as indicated by their FDA approval. 

Modifications to a patient’s lifestyle by changing diet and increasing exercise are  adjuvant therapies that should be implemented in the treatment plan of many diseases.  Discussion of proper diet and exercise routines should also be discussed during well  visits to prevent disease. 

The correct medication is also essential in treating disease and preventing  further complications from a disease. Obesity should not be the exception. These  medications will not be the right fit for everyone who suffers from obesity, but whether  they should be incorporated into a treatment plan should be determined in shared  medical decision-making between a doctor and their patient, not by an insurance company.

– Lauren Miller, D.O., Director of Clinical Sciences Faculty Affairs – WVSOM