More than 25% of U.S. adults with diabetes used injectable GLP-1 medicines last year, according to new data from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
The drugs — including Eli Lilly’s Mounjaro (also sold as Zepbound for weight loss) and Novo Nordisk’s Ozempic (marketed as Wegovy for weight loss) — are approved for type 2 diabetes and are being studied for other health conditions.
Usage by age group
Ages 50–64: 33.3% used a GLP-1 drug, the highest rate reported.
Ages 18–34: 25.3%
Ages 65+: 20.8%
The findings come from a 2024 national survey of U.S. adults. For the first time, respondents with diabetes were asked whether they used GLP-1 medicines for blood sugar control or weight loss.
How the drugs work
GLP-1 drugs mimic a natural hormone that regulates blood sugar, slows digestion, and promotes satiety.
Costs and combination use
The treatments cost about $1,000 per month at list price. Roughly 31% of insulin users and 28% of those on oral diabetes medications also reported using GLP-1 drugs, showing their integration into combination therapy.
Usage by race and ethnicity
Hispanic adults: 31.3%
Black non-Hispanic: 26.5%
White non-Hispanic: 26.2%
Asian non-Hispanic: 12.1%
Lower adoption among Asian adults may point to disparities in access or treatment uptake, the CDC noted. Photo by Manu5, Wikimedia commons.
