Cigna achieves the new agreement on weight loss drugs Eli Lilly and Novo Nordisk

Only half of the health insurer CignaCustomers currently cover popular drug loss drugs GLP-1 Wegovy and Zepbound because of their high costs. But the EVERNORTH company's pharmacy service unit concluded an agreement with drug manufacturers Ely Lilly And Novo Nordisk Who, according to him, will lower prices for employers and their workers.

“This solution is really focused on customers who do not cover it today, and what it allows us to do is one, to put it at a reduced price for the sponsor of the plan, but also to cap the cost of members at $ 200,” Harold Carter, vice-president of Evernorth's pharmaceutical relations, said per month.

Many Evernorm customers are currently providing drugs to workers with co-paids as low as $ 25 per month. For those who hesitated to cover drugs due to the cost, the cost caps of employees at $ 200 would represent less than half of the price that consumers pay in cash without insurance if they bought the medication via Ely Lilly or Novo Nordisk's Direct-to Consumer Websites.

The New Deal will also include a simplified pre-authorization process for drugs, and patients will be able to access drugs at the same price in retail pharmacies, or through Evernorm's home delivery service, the company said.

These new services and discounts will also be provided to EVERNORTH customers already offering weight loss drugs.

“Customers who cover weight loss today, we expect them to see, you know, up to almost 20% a reduction [in] Their costs … with this updated arrangement that we were able to obtain with Lily and Novo, “said Carter, adding that Evernorth was able to get better prices while keeping the coverage of the two drugs.

Last month, CVS Caremark announced that she had concluded an agreement to make Novo de Novo from Novo her main weight loss medication from the second half, which would mean coverage for the Lilly Zepbound would no longer be preferred.

Novo Nordisk would not comment on the new pharmacy services. But a spokesperson for Eli Lilly told CNBC: “Lilly will continue to work with people in terms of health care, government and industry to find creative solutions that help people with obesity to access Zepbound.”

Although Cigna would not discuss the real discounts affected in Evernorth's new arrangement, analysts say that large employers and other insurers have gone between 30% and 50% below the list of medicines.

While Wegovy de Novo lists $ 1,350 per month, in March, the average net of the drug was $ 616 according to an analysis of the Institute for Clinical and Economic Review. For the Lilly Zepbound, the list price is about $ 1,100 per month, while the net price is $ 725.

These new Evernorth and CVS Caremark arrangements could reduce even lower net prices for employers, just as the government is negotiating discounts on Maladie for Ozempic and Wegovy of Novo Nordisk under the law on the reduction of inflation.

These Medicare negotiated prices will take effect in 2027 – which effectively makes Novo Nordisk products the favorite drugs of the program. This could see prices drop even further, said Ben Ippolito, principal researcher in health economics at the American Enterprise Institute.

“Once the medication has been negotiated, it must be presented on Formulary in Medicare. And which means that if you are Eli Lilly, you must try to compete on the Medicare market with a product that will be on the form and have an artificially lower price. And therefore that will filter to what Eli Lilly does,” said Ippolito.

Evernorm's new pricing for weight loss pricing will start on July 1, while employers are starting to make decisions about the coverage of next year's plans.

– CNBC Angelica Peebles contributed to this report.