More Americans taking popular medications used for weight loss, including Ozempic and Wegovy, could benefit the national economy in the future, Goldman Sachs analysts predicted in a recent research report.
Both Ozempic and Wegovy are classified as GLP-1 agonists, a diabetes medication that gained popularity online and among celebrities as an anti-obesity drug. According to a 2023 analysis reported by NBC News, U.S. health care providers wrote more than nine million prescriptions for Ozempic, Wegovy and similar diabetes and obesity drugs during the last three months of 2022. Quarterly prescriptions for those drugs increased 300% between early 2020 and the end of 2022. Ozempic is not approved for weight loss by regulators. However, semaglutide is approved for weight loss under the brand name Wegovy.
Goldman Sachs estimated that GLP-1s could add 0.4% to America’s gross domestic product — a monetary measure of the market value of all the goods and services produced by a country — “in a baseline scenario where 30 million users take the drugs and 70% experience benefits,” and as much as 1% if 60 million Americans take those drugs regularly, according to CNN.
“The main reason we see meaningful upside from healthcare innovation is that poor health imposes significant economic costs. There are several channels through which poor health weighs on economic activity that could diminish if health outcomes improve,” the analysts wrote. Goldman predicted that anywhere between 10 million to 70 million Americans will be taking weight-loss drugs by 2028. The wide range is due to uncertainty over clinical trials, health insurance and available supply, per Fox News.
