Health Minister Frank Vandenbroucke (Vooruit) has decided that the obesity drug Mounjaro will no longer be reimbursed in Belgium, following an earlier decision not to reimburse the similar drug Wegovy for obesity treatment.
Both drugs are popular in Belgium, but they are also expensive. The lowest dose of Mounjaro costs about €179 a month.
Mounjaro is currently reimbursed under certain conditions for patients with type 2 diabetes. The government has now decided that no reimbursement will be granted when it is used to treat obesity.
Diabetes medicines reached a record high in popularity last year, according to recent figures from the National Institute for Health and Disability Insurance, known as RIZIV. Nearly 130,000 people received reimbursement, almost four times as many as in 2019, when the first of these products came onto the Belgian market for the treatment of type 2 diabetes.
RIZIV has for some time expressed concern about the pressure this is placing on the health insurance system. Its spending on these medicines rose in line with patient numbers, increasing from nearly €30 million in 2019 to €122 million in 2025.
Over the full period, total spending exceeded half a billion euros.
According to the health institute Sciensano, 18 per cent of Belgians are living with obesity. The government says broad reimbursement would cost too much and would not be enough on its own to tackle the condition.
“Medication alone is not sufficient. There is also a need for intensive support from physiotherapists, dietitians, psychologists, and a healthy lifestyle,” Vandenbroucke’s office said.
