CVS will add these weight-loss options to drug plans

CVS Health announced it will reinstate coverage of Eli Lilly's blockbuster weight-loss injectable Zepbound and begin coverage of the anti-obesity pill Foundayo for millions of Americans on private insurance plans.

Coverage of Zepbound will begin Oct. 1 and coverage of Lilly's weight-loss pill Foundayo will start June 1. The coverage will be on the standard template from CVS Caremark, a prescription drug manager used by insurers and employers for millions of Americans.

A year ago, CVS Caremark struck a deal to make Novo Nordisk's anti-obesity drug Wegovy a preferred GLP-1 medication without extending similar status to Zepbound. Wegovy − now sold as both an injectable and a weight-loss pill − will remain on CVS Caremark's standard plans "without interruption," Novo Nordisk said in a statement.

The weight-loss drugs from Lilly and Novo will both appear as preferred medications on CVS Caremark's standard formularies, the list of prescription drugs insurers and employers can choose to cover. Insurers and employers that offer insurance benefits for most working-age Americans will be able to tailor coverage.

CVS said bringing Zepbound back to plans is "what our customers asked us for," which is "affordability and optionality" in weight-loss drugs.

CVS Caremark becomes the third large pharmacy benefit manager, known as PBMs, to cover Lilly's anti-obesity medications, the drug company said. The other two major PBMs are UnitedHealth Group's Optum and CIGNA's Express Scripts.

Will more employers cover GLP-1 weight-loss drugs?

Employers that provide insurance benefits to workers and their families are grappling with accelerating costs due to rising health care prices. Health care costs for the average family of four will be $37,824 in 2026, according to consultant Milliman.

Among the fastest-growing segments of health care costs is pharmacy expenses, which increased nearly 15% in 2026 due to spending on GLP-1 medications and specialty drugs, according to Milliman.

A survey by benefits consultant Mercer found 49% of large employers covered GLP-1 medications in 2025, up from 41% in 2023.  A 2025 survey from KFF, a health policy nonprofit, said 43% of large employers covered GLP-1 drugs for weight loss. Smaller companies were less likely to cover the medications.

Novo and Lilly have slashed prices for consumers whose insurance plans don't cover weight-loss medications. Cash-paying customers can buy Wegovy or Zepbound from the pharmaceutical companies, telehealth portals, retailers such as Costco and Sam's Club or TrumpRx, the Trump administration's direct-to-consumer drug sales website.

While it did not reveal pricing under the deal to reinstate Zepbound on standard plans, CVS said it "worked with the manufacturers to secure a more affordable cost."

Consumers also have more options when choosing which prescription weight-loss medications to take. Lilly launched its weight-loss pill Foundayo after gaining Food and Drug Administration approval in April. Novo Nordisk's Wegovy pill became the first FDA-approved GLP-1 pill in December 2025.

More weight-loss drugs are being developed and could hit the market later this year. On May 21, Lilly released late-stage study results showing its next-generation weight-loss shot retatrutide delivered dramatic weight loss among people with obesity. Lilly could seek FDA approval later this year.