Fewer than 10% of individuals eligible to benefit from weight-loss injections such as Wegovy have access to them, warns the World Health Organization as it releases its initial recommendations on the medications.
Given more than one billion individuals worldwide currently classified as obese, it is calling for more widespread and fairer access to this class of drugs.
According to estimates, more than two billion will be obese by 2030 without intervention.
"The latest guidance acknowledges that obesity is a lifelong illness that can be managed with holistic and continuous treatment," remarked the agency's head Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.
High costs, limited production capacity, and logistical bottlenecks are key hurdles to widespread availability to the injections that can aid individuals in losing substantial weight, says the organization.
Weight-Loss Drug Supply Crisis
Even under the current most favorable scenario, the supply of such drugs could only cover around 100 million people – less than 10% of eligible patients, according to the WHO.
The recommendation urges nations and manufacturers to widen availability, by strategies including voluntary licensing.
Exclusive production rights on a key compound – the main ingredient of the drug Wegovy – is set to lapse in several countries in 2026.
The Way Weight-Loss Injections Operate
The injections mimick a body's own hormone to reduce digestion speed, reduce hunger and enhance satiety so individuals eat less.
Patients usually start to lose weight within a few weeks of beginning the regular doses.
Evidence suggests patients may regain a significant portion after a year of stopping the drug, because their usual hunger return.
To be above a healthy weight increases your likelihood for experiencing medical conditions, such as type 2 diabetes, heart disease, stroke, and certain cancers.
Obesity affects people in countries worldwide and was responsible for millions of fatalities worldwide in 2024, per the WHO.
