A bunch of Democratic senators are calling on Well being and Human Providers Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. to maintain a proposed Biden-era rule that will have allowed Medicare and Medicaid to cowl medicine used to deal with weight problems after the Trump administration determined to not finalize it.
Democratic Sens. Jeff Merkley (Ore.), Amy Klobuchar (Minn.), Cory Booker (N.J.), Ben Ray Luján (N.M.) and Gary Peters (Mich.) requested that Kennedy reissue the rule proposed beneath former President Biden.
“We urge you to re-issue a rule that will enable Medicare and Medicaid to cowl medicine used to deal with weight problems. The US faces an indeniable public well being disaster. Greater than 38% of U.S. adults ages 60 and older reside with weight problems,” they wrote.
On account of laws handed in 2003, Medicare is forbidden from overlaying medicine used to deal with weight problems, and most state Medicaid packages additionally do not cowl these drugs. Bipartisan efforts to override this prohibition have stalled in Congress.
The Biden administration sought to sidestep this impediment by issuing a rule in November reinterpreting current statutes to permit for Medicare Half D to cowl anti-obesity medicine. However earlier this month, the Facilities for Medicare and Medicaid Providers introduced it could not be finalizing this rule, offering no motive for the choice.
“This motion won’t solely profit the well being of Individuals, however can also be a vital long-term funding to enhance the pricey therapy of well being issues related to weight problems,” the senators mentioned of their letter to Kennedy.
“From costly hospital stays to a number of therapies for comorbidities, the direct medical prices of weight problems run the U.S. well being care system over $173 billion a 12 months,” the group continued. “Investing in weight problems therapy protection would assist to scale back these astronomical prices over time.”
The senators famous that Kennedy mentioned in one among his affirmation hearings that “the GLP-1 class of medicine are miracle medicine” and urged him to “uphold the idea expressed.”
Kennedy, nevertheless, has also criticized GLP-1 drugs previously, saying in interviews he believes they’re being pushed onto Individuals by international firms.
The Hill has reached out to the Division of Well being and Human Providers for remark.
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