Less than 10% of individuals eligible to benefit from GLP-1 drugs including Wegovy are able to get them, warns the World Health Organization as it issues its initial guidance on the therapies.
Given over a billion individuals worldwide currently obese, it is calling for increased and just access to this class of drugs.
Based on projections, in excess of 2,000,000,000 will be obese by 2030 if no action is taken.
"The latest guidance affirms that excess weight is a long-term condition that can be addressed with comprehensive and continuous support," said the agency's head Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.
Substantial prices, constrained manufacturing, and logistical bottlenecks are key hurdles to universal access to the treatments that can aid individuals in losing considerable weight, notes the agency.
GLP-1 Therapy Scarcity
Despite the present most favorable scenario, the production of GLP-1 therapies could only cover about 100 million people – less than 10% of those who need them, according to the health organization.
The guideline calls on countries and companies to increase availability, by approaches including patent sharing.
Exclusive production rights on the active ingredient – the main component of Novo Nordisk's Wegovy – is scheduled to end in multiple countries in 2026.
The Way Weight-Loss Jabs Function
GLP-1 drugs replicate a natural hormone to reduce digestion speed, suppress the appetite and enhance feelings of fullness so people consume fewer calories.
Patients usually start to lose weight in the initial weeks of starting on the once-weekly jabs.
Research points to patients may put most of the weight back on a year later of stopping the treatment, when their normal appetite come back.
Being carrying excess weight increases your likelihood for experiencing diseases, such as diabetes, heart disease, brain attack, and some malignancies.
Obesity concerns people in countries worldwide and was associated with over three and a half million fatalities worldwide in 2024, per the WHO.
