Over the same time period, enrollment in Medicare Part D grew 12% from 44.9 million beneficiaries to nearly 50.5 million.
The report comes as the Trump administration weighs whether to move forward with a Biden-era proposal to expand coverage of GLP-1s for weight loss under Medicare and Medicaid. Currently, Medicare only covers GLP-1s to treat diabetes and heart disease.
The surge in Medicare Part D spending on diabetes drugs was driven primarily by higher utilization of Novo Nordisk’s Rybelsus and Ozempic, followed by Eli Lilly’s Mounjaro, the OIG report found.
“The prescribers of the diabetes drugs came from a broad range of specialties, primarily internal medicine and endocrinologists, but also including dentists, optometrists, chiropractors and acupuncturists,” the Office of Inspector General said. “These increases merit further inquiry to determine whether [prescription drug event records] were paid in accordance with Medicare requirements and whether the associated drugs were utilized for medically accepted indications.”
Demand for GLP-1 drugs is expected to continue rising in the coming years, particularly as the FDA approves drugs such as Ozempic for additional indications. The report noted that if utilization continues to grow at current rates, Medicare spending for the 10 selected drugs could surpass $106 billion in 2026.
View the full report here.