Four out of 10 employees think they employer should cover the cost of weight-loss jabs as part of their healthcare plans according to new research.
The effectiveness and widespread use of weight-loss jabs, such as Ozempic and Mounjaro, is leading some companies to reassess benefit packages, according to Howden Employee Benefits.
Its research found that one in four (26 per cent) of UK employees have already used one of these medications.
It also found that that 44 per cent of employers are considering revamping healthcare plans, to meet the evolving needs of employees. But Howden’s Changing Face of Employee Health report said this also had to be balanced against the potential impact on financial budgets.
Howden says this dilemma is creating new challenges for businesses as employee demands evolve, prompting an industry-wide overhaul of how many think about benefit provisions.
Of those companies that already cover weight-management drugs, around half (50 per cent) said they now view this as a “cost concern” directly impacting what they can offer as employee benefits. A similar proportion (49 per cent) expect costs to grow further, and one in five (20 per cent) businesses cite obesity related conditions and the associated treatment as the single most prominent factor driving their costs up. Only 5 per cent said they were expecting this cost to slow from next year onwards.
Howden says that while employers face rising costs to cover these drugs, there is a potential trade-off. It points out that weight-related illnesses, such as diabetes, account for a significant number of sick days, resulting in a lack of productivity which can ultimately harm bottom line at many businesses.
Overall it says 72 per cent of UK businesses are already investing in prevention, and using weight-management drugs as part of this could be an effective long-term strategy to curb health issues before they have a detrimental business impact.
Though medical inflation and rising prices will prove tricky to navigate, Howden’s Global Employee Health Report 2026 warns of the potential fallout employers face in failing to shake up healthcare plans to and meet employee demands.
Howden Employee Benefits managing director Cheryl Brennan says: “The demand for these drugs is obvious, and employers can simply not afford to ignore it. However, the financial impact of new obesity medications also cannot be overlooked. It is no longer a future projection – it’s a current reality that is forcing business leaders to rethink their plan design and budget allocations.”
She adds: ”While these drugs offer incredible promise for patient health, their rapidly increasing use poses one of the biggest challenges to benefits affordability in decades.
“The challenge for employers is balancing the cost concern with the clear employee demand. Costs are rising rapidly and medical inflation is set to be 7 per cent, meaning when combined with general inflation, businesses are facing combined price hikes of over 10 per cent over the next year. As a result, the focus of healthcare is changing to preventative measures, in an attempt to mitigate the effects of costs as early as possible, and weight-management drugs are becoming more popular as a prevention tool.
“Treading the line on which drugs to cover will be weighing on the minds of business leaders. There remains plenty of drugs and treatments which are currently not covered by employers’ health plans. So firms will need to justify why they chose to cover weight loss drugs ahead of others. And with demand soaring, consideration must be given to the guardrails in place surrounding eligibility.
“Businesses will have to work out if this improvement balances the scales enough to absorb the cost and cover these drugs as part of their healthcare plans, which has the potential to reshape the employee healthcare space dramatically over the coming years.”