Australia's obesity epidemic has reached a critical new stage, with alarming new data showing four out of every five older adults are now classified as overweight or obese. This stark reality has reignited a fierce national debate over whether powerful new weight-loss medications should be subsidised on the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme (PBS).
The Push for PBS Listing and the Equity Dilemma
Momentum is building for drugs like Ozempic, Mounjaro and Wegovy to be added to the PBS to treat obesity. However, leading experts caution that government funding alone will not be a silver bullet for a problem of this scale. Dr Giles Yeo, a Professor of Genetics at the University of Cambridge, told Australian media that while subsidising the drugs would be a positive step, expectations must be kept in check.
"I think it is a powerful drug to treat obesity," Dr Yeo stated. "But I get the feeling we're still not going to get enough out there yet." He pointed to the experience in the United Kingdom as a warning. There, despite the drugs being available through the NHS, around 95 per cent of users still pay privately due to stringent eligibility rules and supply constraints.
In Australia, access is currently even more restricted. Wegovy is only subsidised for patients with obesity who have already suffered a major cardiovascular event like a stroke or heart attack. For the vast majority, the annual out-of-pocket cost remains prohibitive, often reaching between $4,000 and $5,000.
Medical Need vs. Cosmetic Demand
Dr Yeo emphasised that this limited access has created a significant equity issue, where genuine medical need is being overshadowed by cosmetic demand. "These drugs are not cosmetic. There are too many people taking it to try and get into their bikini to try and fit into the dress," he said. "These drugs are to treat obesity and obesity leading to a number of other diseases."
For individuals living with severe obesity, he argued these medications can be transformative and even life-saving. They significantly lower the risk of developing serious conditions including type 2 diabetes, heart disease, certain cancers, and Alzheimer's disease. "If you reduce obesity, you reduce the cost to the nation of all these other diseases that kill you," Dr Yeo explained.
A National Health Challenge Demands Broader Solutions
The comments come as Australian doctors intensify their push for broader PBS access to these weight-loss treatments. Health Minister Mark Butler recently confirmed he had received recommendations from PBS experts to list Wegovy for people with a BMI of 35 and established cardiovascular disease.
The scale of the challenge is immense. More than 400,000 Australians are currently paying private prices to access these medications, while an estimated six million people across the country are affected by obesity. The World Health Organization has now endorsed this class of drugs for long-term obesity management, acknowledging their medical importance.
However, the drugs are not effective for everyone. Between five and ten per cent of patients do not respond, for reasons that are not yet fully understood. Common side effects are primarily gastrointestinal, including nausea and digestive discomfort. There is also a risk of muscle loss unless the treatment is paired with consistent weight-bearing exercise.
As the government deliberates on subsidy decisions, Dr Yeo delivered a sobering final warning: the nation's obesity crisis is unlikely to be solved by medication alone. Even with public funding, he predicts that demand will continue to far outstrip the available supply, underscoring the need for a comprehensive, multi-faceted approach to public health.
