Losing GLP-1 coverage on January 1? What you pay in cash now
Zepbound is $299 to $449 a month in cash from Eli Lilly, by dose. The top price needs a refill inside 45 days. Wegovy is $349 a month for the pen from Novo Nordisk, or $149 to $299 a month for the pill.
Two cash programs to check.
No insurance needed.
- SnagRxSponsored$99 a monthcompounded semaglutideCheck price →SnagRx's homepage shows its 12-month prepaid prices first
- MedviSponsored$299 a monthFirst month $179compounded semaglutideCheck price →Straight to MEDVi's GLP-1 sign-up
What your drug costs in cash
Cash price a month
- Zepbound$299 to $449From Eli Lilly, by dose. The $449 dose price holds only if you refill within 45 days.
- Wegovy pen$349The standard pen, from NovoCare.
- Wegovy pill$149 to $299From NovoCare, by dose. $299 at the doses most people stay on.
- Compounded semaglutide$76Collective, with the $199 yearly membership averaged in. A pharmacy-made version that is not FDA-approved and is not Wegovy or Ozempic.
- Compounded tirzepatide$86Collective, with the $199 yearly membership averaged in. A pharmacy-made version that is not FDA-approved and is not Zepbound or Mounjaro.
Why plans are dropping GLP-1 coverage
Employers. Marsh surveyed more than 1,800 employers and found that some who needed cost relief chose to drop weight-loss GLP-1 coverage for 2027. It expects employer health costs to rise 8.2% next year, and says GLP-1 use is a full point of that.
Source: Marsh, Survey: Health benefit costs expected to jump 8.2% in 2027, the biggest increase since 2003, August 31, 2026.
Massachusetts. An estimated 112,000 fewer people with private insurance used a GLP-1 for weight loss in the first three months of 2026 than in 2025, a 52% drop, after insurers there stopped paying for them. The state employee plan stopped in July 2026.
Source: Massachusetts Health Policy Commission, GLP-1 Spending in Massachusetts Projected To Decrease Significantly in 2026 After Changes in Commercial Coverage, September 17, 2026.
Before your last covered refill
- Find the date. The letter from your plan or HR names the last day it pays.
- Price the cash route now, while you still have medication.
- Know who writes the prescription. LillyDirect and NovoCare fill a prescription from your own doctor. A telehealth program has its own prescriber, who decides the dose.
Questions people ask when coverage ends
What does Zepbound cost without insurance in 2027?
Today Zepbound is $299 to $449 a month by dose. Lilly gives no end date for those self-pay prices, and says its offer on the higher doses can end at any time.
Can I stay on the same drug if my plan drops it?
Yes, if you pay cash. Eli Lilly sells Zepbound direct and Novo Nordisk sells Wegovy direct, at the prices above.