Could Ozempic reduce government spending?

(NewsNation) — Arizona Congressman David Schweikert is arguing that Ozempic and other weight loss drugs could lead to lower obesity rates, resulting in less government spending on health care, The Daily Beast reported.

“Next year, one of the GLP-1s, the Ozempics, goes off-patent,” Schweikert said during a presentation to Four Peaks Young Republicans, The Daily Beast reported. “The price is gonna crash. What would happen if you took morbidly obese populations on Medicare, Medicaid, Indian Health Services, the VA and gave them access to it?”

NewsNation’s “The Hill” panel challenged Schweikert’s argument Monday.

Julia Manchester, The Hill’s national political reporter, questioned how the government could regulate who actually gets prescribed Ozempic.

“There are people who may be classified as clinically obese, who need Ozempic. … However, we’re starting to see that this drug has been taken by people who don’t fit into that category, just to lose weight, for cosmetic purposes. And then we see that this drug also can have some pretty negative side effects,” Manchester said.

“The government shouldn’t be prescribing the drug anyway. If somebody is obese, that should be something between them and their doctor to try and figure it out,” added Bill McGinley, former White House Cabinet secretary.

Drugs like Ozempic and Wegovy, which were initially manufactured for people living with diabetes, have surged in popularity since research showed the active ingredient in Ozempic, semaglutide, works for weight loss.

Last month, the FDA updated Ozempic’s label amid concerns it may block intestines in some patients.

The FDA revealed it updated the label after a few issues emerged as the drug has increased in popularity. The label warns of a gastrointestinal disorder called ileus, which is a lack of movement in the intestines that can lead to pain, nausea and other symptoms, according to Medical News Today.

NewsNation’s Sean Noone contributed to this report.