Leading societies endorse Treat and Reduce Obesity Act

The Endocrine Society and the National Council on Aging (NCOA) have endorsed the introduction of the bipartisan Treat and Reduce Obesity Act (TROA) in the US Senate. The legislation will ensure that Medicare and Medicaid beneficiaries have access to effective anti-obesity medications. Medicare coverage of anti-obesity medications is currently prohibited under law.

Access to these medications would benefit millions of Americans. More than two in five adults nationwide are living with obesity, according to the Society’s Obesity Playbook. Obesity-related medical care costs total US$173 billion a year.

A new generation of effective anti-obesity medications called GLP-1s have given clinicians new tools to help people with this chronic disease. The Endocrine Society said that its physician members have noted that clinicians often wait too long to prescribe anti-obesity medications due to insurance coverage issues.

When patients are forced to delay treatment, it puts them at risk of developing other chronic diseases and medical conditions. People living with obesity are at increased risk of developing over 230 complications, including cancer, type 2 diabetes, heart disease, liver diseases and kidney diseases.

The bill also would expand Medicare coverage of intensive behavioural therapy (IBT), which is an effective lifestyle intervention for obesity that includes dietary and nutrition assessment. Intensive behavioural therapy is recommended by the US Preventative Services Task Force.

First introduced in 2013, TROA aims to improve Medicare by removing outdated barriers to quality obesity care. The legislation has consistently received bipartisan support, highlighting a growing agreement among policymakers about the need to tackle the nation's obesity epidemic.

"Obesity is a chronic condition that has affected millions of Americans for decades, but getting adequate care remains stubbornly difficult for too many older adults," said Ramsey Alwin, NCOA President and CEO. "The reintroduction of TROA is a welcome and vital step toward ensuring all Americans have access to the full range of obesity treatments."

The legislation would repeal an outdated statute that prevents Medicare Part D from covering FDA-approved obesity medications. TROA also enhances access to IBT under Medicare Part B, which under current policy can only be provided by primary care doctors. TROA expands access to IBT to ensure a broader array of health care providers, including registered dietitian nutritionists, obesity medicine specialists, endocrinologists, bariatric surgeons, clinical psychologists, and community-based providers. By expanding access to lifestyle-based interventions like IBT, TROA ensures patients with obesity will have access to the full spectrum of obesity care.