Everyone hoping for a slimmed down 2026 got a boost with the news the U.S. Food and Drug Administration has approved a pill version of the weight-loss drug Wegovy. This marks the first in the new era of weight-loss GLP-1 medications to gain approval for a pill version.
Previously, this class of drugs was only available as an injection, but now Novo Nordisk, the maker of Wegovy, says the once-daily pill will be available by prescription in early January. GLP-1's function by triggering a hormone that creates feelings of fullness, and the makers say the pill is just as effective as the shot.
US obesity rates are showing signs of a decline for the first time in years, dropping from a peak around 39.9% in 2022 to approximately 37% in 2025, and that drop is largely attributed to the booming use of weight-loss drugs.
Oprah Daily reported the oral drugs work much the same way as the injectables. However, Louis Aronne, MD, Professor of Metabolic Research at Weill Cornell Medicine in New York, notes that there are some key differences, saying, "Semaglutide is a peptide (a small chain of amino acids); when taken orally, it would normally be broken down by stomach enzymes in your GI tract. The pill version is specially formulated to protect it, but only a small amount is absorbed—so popping semaglutide as a pill requires a higher dose than an injection, since some of the medication degrades in your stomach acid."
But there's no poke. And the Wegovy pill is just the latest change to come in the weight loss world.
Also on the horizon for 2026 are Orforglipron, a once-daily pill offering benefits beyond weight loss, including improved cholesterol; Triple G (Retatrutide), a drug from Lilly that experts say shows the promise of "significant weight loss" for users -- beyond the current crop. It may get closer to approval by late 2026. And muscle-preserving treatments: like Bimagrumab are on their way to preserve muscle mass during weight loss. Trials of that are continuing in 2026.
As for cost, new pricing plans announced jointly by the Trump administration and drug manufacturers Lilly and Novo Nordisk say the forthcoming GLP-1 pills will reportedly cost self-pay customers $150 per month for the lowest dose. That's a whole new world from the thousands of dollars a month they cost when they were launched.
The lower cost might influence insurance coverage, too. “Some insurers may opt to pay for oral GLP-1 medications, rather than injectables, because they’re much cheaper,” says Dr. Caroline Apovian, one of the world's premiere weight loss experts.