The American Diabetes Association (ADA) praised North Carolina's decision to preserve Medicaid coverage for FDA-approved obesity medications, after this benefit had been at risk of being cut due to budget pressures.
According to the ADA, nearly 35% of the state's adult population lives with obesity, a figure that rises to 32% among adults over 60, and the share is projected to keep growing in the coming decades. Many of these medications, beyond treating obesity, are also used to help manage type 2 diabetes.
Monica Billger, the ADA's director of state government affairs, said preserving this coverage protects access to evidence-based care for people living with diabetes, obesity, or both.