Feb 26 (Reuters) - Medicare spending on some diabetes

drugs, including popular treatments such as Ozempic, surged

nearly five-fold to $35.8 billion between 2019 and 2023, a U.S.

government watchdog's report showed this week.

Medicare, the government-backed program for adults aged 65

and older and those with disabilities, only covers the use of

GLP-1 drugs for diabetes, but not for weight loss.

Spending on older medicines like metformin, used only

for diabetes, declined. But that of popular GLP-1 drugs such as

Novo Nordisk's Ozempic surged over the five years,

the report by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services'

Office of the Inspector General showed.

Ozempic, which has also been used off-label for obesity,

saw a more than 16-fold rise in spending to $9.2 billion in 2023

from 2019 - roughly doubling every year.

Surge in their use merits further inquiry into whether the

claims were paid for appropriate use, the watchdog said.

The report comes three months after former US president Joe

Biden's outgoing administration proposed expanding coverage of

GLP-1 drugs to weight loss. It would be effective in 2026 if

President Donald Trump's administration backs the move.

"The data brief may provide ammunition for HHS Secretary

Robert Kennedy Jr. and others who see the surge in GLP-1 use as

a symptom of 'overmedication' more generally in the US," said TD

Cowen analyst Rick Weissenstein.

He added that the data could give Kennedy a reason to

kill the proposed rule.

Kennedy has criticized drugs like Ozempic, which Novo also

sells under the brand Wegovy for weight loss, saying it focused

on symptoms of the obesity crisis rather than fixing the food

system.

The list included popular GLP-1 drugs like Novo's Ozempic,

Rybelsus and Victoza, as well as Eli Lilly's ( LLY ) Mounjaro

and Trulicity.

The drugmakers did not immediately respond to a Reuters

request for comment on the report.