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Lawmakers press DSS on Medicaid coverage for GLP‑1 obesity drugs as costs and federal policy shift debate
Summary
Committee members pressed the Department of Social Services about implementing the 2023 law on coverage of FDA‑approved obesity drugs for Medicaid, while the agency raised concerns about cost and federal waiver policy; advocates urged swift action.
Connecticut lawmakers pressed the Department of Social Services on March 6 over whether Husky members will get access to FDA‑approved GLP‑1 weight‑loss medications after the legislature required coverage in 2023.
Several state senators and representatives challenged Commissioner Andrea Barton Reeves about delays and apparent inconsistencies in implementing Public Act 23‑94, which directs Medicaid to cover FDA approved drugs for obesity (for people with BMI thresholds set in statute). Lawmakers and patient advocates described cases where Medicaid beneficiaries had trouble obtaining refills or were denied coverage unless they met diabetes or other comorbidity codes.
Commissioner Reeves told the Human Services Committee that while Medicaid already covers two FDA‑approved GLP‑1s for type 2…
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