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

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 these drugs for all the obese people in this country at the moment, it would cost this country $9 billion a year.

$9 billion is what we pay for all of our jails and the staff who run them. The Ministry of Justice, the whole court system, customs and our police force and our entire defence force.

That is how much money $9 billion is.

It is not affordable for us, it's not a one-off either.

You don't just pay for it for a year and everybody's fat problems are solved and on we go with life and everybody can eat what they want to.

These drugs, according to the WHO, are meant for long-term use.

So that's $9 billion every single year, and the minute these people come off the drugs, they get fat again, right?
So you have to keep funding it.

Not a chance.

Here's the happy news though.

These drugs come off patent or start coming off patent in about 3 months, 4 months' time, which means that in short order, you can expect to buy knockoffs for knockoff prices.

Which means punters who want to lose weight should be able to fund it themselves, and that is ultimately where the buck should stop, isn't it?

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