The Global Health Body Issues Concern Over Severe Shortage of Weight-Loss Medications
Fewer than a tenth of patients eligible to benefit from weight-loss injections like Wegovy can access them, states the global health agency as it releases its initial guidance on the medications.
With in excess of 1,000,000,000 people worldwide currently living with obesity, it is calling for broader and more equitable availability to this class of drugs.
Based on estimates, more than two billion will be living with obesity by 2030 without intervention.
"The latest guidance acknowledges that obesity is a lifelong illness that can be treated with holistic and lifelong care," said the agency's head Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.
High costs, limited production capacity, and logistical bottlenecks are key barriers to widespread availability to the injections that can help people shift considerable weight, explains the organization.
Weight-Loss Drug Supply Crisis
Despite the current most optimistic scenario, the manufacturing of these medications could only cover about 100 million people – less than 10% of those who need them, according to the WHO.
The guideline urges governments and firms to widen access, via approaches including patent sharing.
Exclusive production rights on semaglutide – the primary ingredient of Novo Nordisk's Wegovy – is set to lapse in multiple nations in 2026.
How Obesity Injections Operate
The injections mimick a body's own hormone to reduce digestion speed, reduce hunger and boost satiety so individuals reduce food intake.
People usually start to lose weight after several weeks of commencing the regular doses.
Evidence indicates users may see weight return within a year of stopping the medication, as their usual hunger return.
Being above a healthy weight raises your risk for developing medical conditions, like type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular issues, stroke, and specific cancers.
Obesity impacts people in all nations and was responsible for millions of deaths worldwide in 2024, per the health agency.
