Eli Lilly to sell Zepbound directly to consumers without insurance coverage
(NEW YORK) — People who are in need of weight loss medications but do not have insurance coverage will soon have a new way to access one of the popular medications, Zepbound.
Eli Lilly, the maker of Zepbound, announced Tuesday it will begin selling the weight loss drug directly to consumers through the company’s direct pharmacy, LillyDirect.
With a doctors’ prescription, consumers will be able to purchase Zepbound in vial forms that are about half the price of the auto-injector pre-filled pens sold in pharmacies, according to Eli Lilly CEO Dave Ricks.
A one-month supply of Zepbound at a 2.5-milligram dose will cost $349, while a one-month supply at a 5-milligram dose will cost $549, according to Ricks.
Medical professionals can start filling prescriptions for the Zepbound vials on Tuesday via LillyDirect and the vials will start shipping in the days ahead.
Ricks noted that the new option will be self-pay only and will not participate in insurance.
With insurance coverage, Zepbound can cost as low as $25 per month, but without coverage, the medication can cost more than $1,000 per month.
Consumers who purchase Zepbound through LillyDirect will have access to educational resources on how to administer the medication, according to Ricks.
Zepbound is approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration as a weight loss management treatment for people with obesity or those who are overweight with at least one related underlying condition such as high blood pressure.
However, many private insurers and Medicare do not cover weight loss drugs used for obesity.
Zepbound contains the same active ingredient, tirzepatide, as another medication, Mounjaro, which is also made by Lilly and is FDA-approved to treat Type 2 diabetes.
Tirzepatide works by helping the pancreas increase the production of insulin to move sugar from the blood into body tissues.
It also slows down the movement of food through the stomach and curbs appetite, thereby causing weight loss.
Past clinical studies have shown users of medications used for weight loss like Zepbound and Mounjaro can lose between 5% and 20% of their body weight on the medications over time.
Medical specialists point out that using medication to lose weight also requires cardio and strength training and changing your diet to one that includes proteins and less processed foods with added sugars.
The most commonly reported side effects of medications used for weight loss are nausea and constipation, but gallbladder and pancreatic disease are also reported.
Makers of these drugs recommend having a conversation about the side effect profile and personalized risks with a health care professional before starting.
(NEW YORK) — Cases of whooping cough are more than three times higher this year than they were at the same time last year, according to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
So far this year, there have been 10,865 recorded cases of whooping cough, or pertussis, compared to the 2,918 recorded during the same time in 2023, CDC data shows.
The number of cases is closer to the 8,271 cases of whooping cough recorded this time in 2019, indicating a return to pre-pandemic levels.
Doctors said that reported cases of whooping cough were lower than usual over the past few years, likely due to COVID-19 mitigation measures including masking, remote learning and social distancing.
“During the pandemic itself, we really had a low point in transmission of pertussis, and that was just because of all of the social distancing and isolation,” Dr. Mike Patrick, an emergency medicine physician at Nationwide Children’s Hospital in Columbus, Ohio, told ABC News. “If kids aren’t around each other, and also around adults, then they’re not able to pick up the disease, since it’s an infectious disease and transmitted from one person to another.”
“So, I think, we’re just getting back up there because people are back doing the normal things that we do, and that’s just the pattern that we see with the vaccine that we have. But I will say, without the vaccine, we’d see a whole lot more pertussis than 10,000 cases,” he added.
Dr. Lori Handy, an attending physician in the division of infectious diseases at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, said the uptick in cases of whooping cough post-pandemic is similar to those seen in the U.S. with other diseases as mitigation measures started to disappear.
“I honestly think it was a little surprising that it took this long, recognizing we lifted [many] measures close to two years ago,” she told ABC News. “I think many folks remember the increase in RSV cases that we saw back in 2022, so this has lagged behind some other respiratory infections, but definitely now has resurfaced and looks very typical to 2019.”
Whooping cough is a very contagious respiratory illness caused by a type of bacteria called Bordetella pertussis.
These bacteria attach to the cilia — the tiny, hair-like structures found on the surface of some cells –of the upper respiratory system that help clear mucous and other debris in the airway, and release toxins. The toxins damage the cilia and cause the upper airways to swell, according to the CDC.
“You get airway swelling and a terrible, terrible cough because the cilia aren’t working, and so your body resorts to coughing to try to keep stuff out of the lungs and to bring things up,” Patrick said. “Oftentimes, babies will have a little bit difficulty breathing. They’re having the cough…and then they take a big, deep breath, because they hadn’t breathed during all those coughs, and that’s why it’s called whooping cough, because that’s the [sound] when they’re coughing.”
Whooping cough is spread from person-to-person through coughing and sneezing. Infected people can be contagious for weeks without knowing they have whooping cough.
Early symptoms often resemble a common cold — runny nose, cough and low-grade fever — and typically last for one to two weeks. Symptoms, however, can progress to rapid, violent coughing fits that can last up to 12 weeks.
Whooping cough can be treated with antibiotics and receiving treatment early can reduce the severity of the infection. Most whooping cough symptoms can be managed at home, according to the CDC.
Although anyone can contract pertussis, infants under age one, pregnant women and immunocompromised people are at highest risk for severe illness.
“In the younger kids, and especially in infants, they can have apnea, so they stop breathing. They can be hospitalized in the intensive care unit, and unfortunately, children can and have died from pertussis,” Dr. Robert Frenck, a professor of pediatrics in the division of infectious diseases at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital in Ohio, told ABC News. “So, these are not innocuous infections. They can be very serious, and they can be deadly.”
A vaccine for whooping cough was introduced in the late 1940s and the number of cases each year has since dropped dramatically, decreasing more than 90% compared to the pre-vaccine era.
Before the vaccine, there were an estimated 200,000 cases annually among children and up to 9,000 children died, according to the CDC.
There are two types of vaccines currently used to protect against whooping cough: diphtheria, tetanus, and pertussis (DTaP) vaccine for babies and children younger age 7 and tetanus, diphtheria, and pertussis (Tdap) vaccines for older children, adults and pregnant women.
A recent report from the CDC found that exemptions for routine childhood vaccination among kindergartners during the 2022-23 school year were at the highest level ever, including for the DTaP vaccine. Frenck said the increase in whooping cough cases are a reminder that vaccines are effective, but said he doesn’t discourage vaccine-hesitant patents from asking questions.
“Parents want to do what’s best for their children, and so they want to keep their children healthy,” he said. “Unfortunately, there has been a fair amount of misinformation about vaccines to where people are confused. So, my recommendation really is to talk with your health care provider, ask your questions, get your answers, feel comfortable about having your children vaccinated. Vaccines are well-tested, vaccines are safe, vaccines are protective.”
Handy said she also encourages everybody who is eligible to get vaccinated and for health care providers to be on the lookout for pertussis cases
“For health care providers … recognize this is back, like five years ago, and the only way we will detect it is by testing it and then using our public health measures to prevent spread,” she said.
(NEW YORK) — A New Hampshire resident died after being infected with a rare mosquito-borne disease, health officials said Tuesday.
The resident, an adult from Hempstead — near the southeastern border with Massachusetts — had tested positive for Eastern Equine Encephalitis virus (EEEV). The patient was hospitalized due to severe central nervous system disease and died of their illness, according to an update from the state’s Department of Health & Human Services (DHHS).
This is the first reported human case of EEEV in New Hampshire in a decade after three people contracted the disease in 2014, two of whom died, DHHS said.
It’s unclear when the resident, who recently passed away, first became infected with EEEV. No other details were available including name, age or sex.
In addition to the person infected with EEEV, the virus has also been found in one horse and seven mosquito batches in New Hampshire so far this summer, according to the health department.
Neighboring states have been experiencing similar threats. In Massachusetts, 10 communities were designated as being under high or critical risk of the virus, according to the state’s Department of Public Health. Many of the areas began implementing targeted mosquito spraying to protect residents.
“In New Hampshire, mosquitos transmit infections including Eastern Equine Encephalitis Virus, West Nile Virus, and Jamestown Canyon Virus,” Dr. Benjamin Chan, New Hampshire’s state epidemiologist, said in a statement.
“We believe there is an elevated risk for EEEV infections this year in New England given the positive mosquito samples identified. The risk will continue into the fall until there is a hard frost that kills the mosquitos. Everybody should take steps to prevent mosquito bites when they are outdoors,” the statement continued.
EEEV is a rare but serious disease that spreads by bites from infected mosquitoes. It does not spread via touching or droplets from coughing or sneezing, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
Most people who are infected either show mild symptoms or no symptoms at all. However, severe cases usually begin with fever, headache, chills and vomiting before progressing to encephalitis, which is swelling of the brain, or meningitis, which is swelling of the membranes that surround the brain and spinal cord.
Many survivors have ongoing neurologic problems including convulsions, paralysis and intellectual disability, and about 30% of encephalitis cases from this virus result in death.
There are no human vaccines and no treatments specifically for EEEV. The CDC says rest, fluids and over-the-counter pain medications may help relieve some symptoms.
As of Tuesday, four cases have been reported aside from the New Hampshire case — with one case each in Massachusetts, New Jersey, Vermont and Wisconsin, according to the CDC.
The New Hampshire DHHS said residents can protect themselves by using effective mosquito repellents, wearing long-sleeve shirts and long pants when outside and avoiding outdoor activities when mosquitoes are the most active, including early in the morning and during evening hours.
Additionally, residents are advised to remove standing water from around their homes, which attracts mosquitoes, and to make sure doors and windows have tight-fitting screens.
(NEW YORK) — A new study suggests a popular artificial sweetener found in everything from drinks and baked goods to gum and candy could be linked to a higher risk of blood clots, but the researchers themselves say their findings are preliminary and more research is needed to understand any potential health risks.
Erythritol, a zero-calorie sweetener widely used in sugar replacement or reduced-sugar products, was found to increase levels of proteins associated with blood clotting compared to regular sugar, according to a new study published Thursday in the medical journal Arteriosclerosis, Thrombosis and Vascular Biology.
“This research raises some concerns that a standard serving of an erythritol-sweetened food or beverage may acutely stimulate a direct clot-forming effect,” the study’s co-author, Dr. W. H. Wilson Tang, research director for Heart Failure and Cardiac Transplantation Medicine at Cleveland Clinic, said in a statement announcing the study’s findings. “Erythritol and other sugar alcohols that are commonly used as sugar substitutes should be evaluated for potential long-term health effects especially when such effects are not seen with glucose itself.”
For the study, 10 people were randomly assigned to drink water mixed with 30 grams of erythritol, while another 10 individuals were randomly assigned to drink water mixed with 30 grams of glucose.
The amount of 30 grams was chosen because it is the quantity commonly found in erythritol-containing foods, according to the Cleveland Clinic researchers who led the study.
The people who drank water mixed with erythritol were found 30 minutes later to have a higher level of proteins involved in platelet clumping in their bloodstream compared to those who drank glucose.
Erythritol is a sugar alcohol that is naturally found in fruits such as watermelons, pears and grapes, but has since been processed as a food additive used to sweeten and enhance the flavor of foods, according to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.
According to Cleveland Clinic researchers, erythritol is produced through fermenting corn.
Consuming high amounts of sugar carries its own risk.
Due to a growing obesity epidemic, artificial sweeteners are becoming increasingly common ingredients found in soft drinks, “diet” foods and other processed products. Although federal regulatory agencies like the FDA have deemed most artificial sweeteners as safe, studies are ongoing about the long-term health effects.
A previous study on erythritol from researchers at Cleveland Clinic found that higher levels of erythritol were found among patients who experienced a major adverse cardiovascular event — which includes stroke, heart attack, blood clots and cardiovascular death — over three years of observation.
Last year, the World Health Organization issued a new recommendation that people who are trying to lose weight should avoid using zero-calorie non-sugar sweeteners.
Zero-calorie non-sugar sweeteners have not been shown to help with weight loss long-term in children or adults, and their use may bring side effects like increased risk of cardiovascular diseases, Type 2 diabetes and death in adults, the WHO said at the time.