Briefings

What you need to read the board properly.

• Six fee traps

  Compare the product, supply period, recurring charge and commitment before treating a headline as the full bill.

• The compounding rules

  Cheap GLP-1s exist because of compounding. The FDA moved against it again in April. What that means for the board.

• Tirzepatide vs semaglutide

  A head-to-head trial settled the results question. The price question goes the other way.

• How to spot a bad seller

  The FDA sent more than 55 warning letters to online GLP-1 sellers in one day. Here is how to tell a licensed programme from the rest.

• The twelve-month cost

  Month one is the cheapest month you will have. Here is the full-year arithmetic, including the costs nobody puts in the advert.

• Medicare, GLP-1s and the $50 month

  CMS is running a time-limited programme giving eligible Part D members certain GLP-1s for $50 a month. If you are on Medicare, read this before paying cash for anything.

• The approved pills changed the maths

  Two oral GLP-1s were approved either side of the new year, both starting at $149 a month. That undercuts a large part of the compounded market.

• What happens when you stop

  Most people regain a substantial share of the weight. Here is what the research actually found, and what that means for how you plan and budget.

• GLP-1s after 50

  These drugs work at any age. The risks are not identical at every age, and the muscle and bone question deserves more attention than it usually gets.

• Titration, properly explained

  When to step up, when to hold, when to go back down, and why restarting after a gap is the one genuinely dangerous mistake.

• How to read your prescription

  What the abbreviations mean, and the mg-versus-mL distinction that is the one genuine hazard in this category.