Larry Williams Drive

Perspective with Heather du Plessis-Allan: The Government should not fund Ozempic

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Sinopsis

The big health news today is that the WHO is essentially calling for the funding of weight loss drugs like Wegovy and Ozempic for people who would otherwise not be able to afford it. So basically, make it not just for the rich, but for the poor as well. The WHO doesn't actually say governments should be the ones funding the drugs. An alternative interpretation of what they've said is that the people who make the drugs should drop the price to make them more affordable, but that's obviously not going to happen because profits. So you can probably assume, the bill lands with governments around the world. Now, that's a nice idea. And given how effective these drugs are in dropping weight off people, it would probably make a massive difference to the obesity rates in New Zealand, but it is simply not affordable for New Zealand. We have done the numbers before on the show. I'll run you through them again, OK? The drugs cost $500 a month. There are 1.5 million Kiwis who are considered obese. If we funded