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Americans spent $5.7 trillion on healthcare in 2025. That figure alone is staggering. Moreover, it represents a 7.3% jump from 2024, amounting to nearly $16,500 per person. Now, federal projections confirm the country will cross the $6 trillion mark in 2026, and prescription drug costs are leading the charge.
The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services released data showing prescription drug spending will exceed $560 billion in 2026. That reflects an 8.2% rise in drug prices from the prior year. Furthermore, no other major healthcare category is growing at this pace. Higher volumes of doctor visits, hospital procedures, and medication use all contributed. Still, the biggest story behind the numbers is the explosive rise of GLP-1 receptor agonists.
Drugs like Ozempic, Wegovy, and Mounjaro started as type 2 diabetes treatments. Their dramatic effectiveness for weight loss, however, turned them into household names. Their financial footprint now reflects that popularity. Semaglutide and tirzepatide each generated roughly $60 billion in drug spending last year. That is more than double what apixaban, the third-highest drug, produced. Together, GLP-1 medications drove about 14% of all U.S. prescription drug spending. They also accounted for nearly a third of all spending growth in 2025. Notably, those figures exclude direct-to-consumer sales, so the real cost runs even higher.
Looking ahead, demand for these medications shows no signs of slowing. J.P. Morgan Global Research projects around 25 million Americans will use GLP-1 therapy by 2030. That is up from roughly 10 million today. Additionally, the global incretin market is forecast to reach $200 billion by that same year. Oral GLP-1 pills are now entering the market. As a result, patients who previously avoided injections now have a more convenient option, and that will widen the user base further.
Coverage policy is struggling to keep pace. CMS launched the Medicare GLP-1 Bridge program, giving Medicare Part D enrollees access to select GLP-1 drugs for obesity treatment. The program runs from July 2026 through the end of 2027, with a fixed $50 monthly copayment price. Meanwhile, the longer-term BALANCE Model, originally set to expand coverage in 2027, faces an indefinite delay for Medicare. However, Medicaid expansion under the same program did begin in May 2026.
State Medicaid coverage tells an uneven story. Only 13 states covered GLP-1 drug costs for obesity as of January 2026. That is actually down from 16 states the year before. Budget pressures and federal funding cuts largely explain the decline. Consequently, access to these medications still depends heavily on where a patient lives and what plan they carry.
Employers also feel the strain. Surveys of employer-sponsored health plans project cost increases of 6.5% to 10%. GLP-1 drugs rank among the top reasons cited. Thus, companies managing employee benefits face growing pressure to contain prescription drug prices while keeping coverage competitive.
The American Society of Health-System Pharmacists projects total U.S. prescription drug spending will top $1 trillion in 2026. Clinic-based drug spending, specifically, is expected to grow between 14% and 16%. Importantly, researchers attribute most of this growth to more patients using more medications, not simply to rising drug prices. That distinction matters. It suggests the demand driving these numbers is structural and long-term, not a short-term spike.
In sum, GLP-1 medications have fundamentally reshaped pharmaceutical spending across the United States. Policymakers, insurers, and employers are now working to manage that shift. At the same time, they face pressure to preserve access to treatments that deliver real clinical benefit for millions of patients living with obesity and type 2 diabetes.
