February 26, 2024 11:00 am
Presentation:
Cost Calculator of Anti-Obesity Medications in the United States
Josh Khachadourian, Senior Regional Account Manager, Lehigh Valley, PA, Novo Nordisk
Affecting approximately one billion people worldwide, overweight and obesity are becoming major health and economic concerns. Obesity-related comorbidities, such as cardiovascular disease, type 2 diabetes, and osteoarthritis (OA), have created a significant economic burden on the health system, as well as employer and societal perspectives. A reduction in body weight is pivotal to improve such conditions for people who are overweight or obese. Lifestyle interventions, such as dieting and physical exercise, are leading options in the prevention and management for overweight and obesity. Clinical guidelines recommend pharmacological interventions, namely anti-obesity medications (AOMs), as a supplement to lifestyle interventions for patients with obesity. Employers have questions regarding the impact of AOM utilization on healthcare cost, and a flexible yet simple tool is needed to forecast the total drug costs of AOMs.
The objective of the cost calculator is to estimate the one-year pharmacy cost of using AOMs to treat patients who are overweight or obese. The tool focuses primarily on drug costs and utilization without consideration of medical offsets or downstream consequences.
Josh Khachadourian
