Obesity Drug Access: VIPs Get Early Access?

A powerful new obesity drug from Eli Lilly, retatrutide, is generating significant anticipation for its potential to achieve bariatric-surgery levels of weight loss. However, the drug's access pathway has become a subject of scrutiny.

STAT has reported that Eli Lilly and the FDA granted one individual access to retatrutide through the FDA's compassionate use program. This pathway typically provides experimental treatments to patients with serious, life-threatening conditions when no other options exist.

The request for this 79-year-old man was made by a senior clinician at the National Institutes of Health for refractory obesity with severe complications, including obstructive sleep apnea and pulmonary hypertension. Questions arose about the patient's identity, with initial inquiries directed at former President Trump, who later denied receiving the drug.

Bioethicists and health officials have expressed surprise at the single-patient compassionate use application for obesity, a widespread condition. They question why a broad access program wasn't established, drawing parallels to the drug's current clinical trials. Eli Lilly stated they follow all applicable regulations for such requests.

Retatrutide has shown remarkable results in trials, with participants losing an average of 28 percent of their body weight over 80 weeks. This surpasses the efficacy of existing obesity drugs like semaglutide and tirzepatide, which target fewer hormones. Despite these promising results, some experts note that side effects can still be an issue for patients.