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Expect More From... Health Outcomes!

Writer's picture: Christine JohnstonChristine Johnston

September 22, 2023

“Losing the forest for the trees” is the expression that continuously tumbles through my thoughts as daily healthcare news alerts swirl in my inbox regarding coverage of diabetes and obesity (diabesity) medications. Thankfully, most people agree that action is required to tackle the diabesity crisis our country is facing. Everyone’s version of “how” is the curious question at hand.


Take a step back and think about all the health improvements possibilities when provided with $1 million dollars. The current SELECT trial outcomes identify the medication price tag to prevent one heart attack, stroke or cardiovascular event is $1.1 million dollars. These are not the only health benefits promoted by the wildly popular medication options but are often the ones touted for coverage rationale.


Society is at a pivotal juncture with the knowledge of how these drugs will behave in the market and power of future predictive modeling inclusive of the 70+ drugs in development for obesity. In a “more is better” society, one must be steadfast in providing an independent, non-biased strategy to meet the growing need. Aardvark Chief Operating Officer Bryan Jones told STAT in April.


“What I really find attractive here is we know that at the end of the day, there is not going to be one magic pill that makes you lose all of the weight. It probably doesn’t exist. And so treatment for patients is going to be some kind of cocktail of two or three types of medications.” https://lnkd.in/gBZz6uwd


Is the answer really two, three or even more medications? Will that improve societal health and healthcare financial burden or are there other options to keep Plans and their members from being swept out to sea? Dr. Bhaskar Bhushan identifies one of the keys to success by promoting the appropriate use of these drugs to those with the highest risk. Airfinity analysts remind us of recent PCSK9 history. Collective effort from multiple stakeholders proved pushing back to the fundamentals of appropriate use is a worthwhile endeavor. https://lnkd.in/eCAWj_JG


Since there is no magic bullet, let’s keep our eyes on the forest, otherwise known as a multi-modality approach meeting patients where they are holistically. Now is the time to define an intentional strategy that serves the needs of all!

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