GLP-1-Based Therapies: Cost, Coverage, and Access for Transformative Drugs

  • HealthXcelerate
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Discover how payers and policy makers see GLP-1 medications and learn how coverage decisions about these therapies are made. 

  • Online; Self-Paced

Enroll and gain access to course materials to complete at your own pace.

$495

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Overview

In GLP-1-Based Therapies: Cost, Coverage, and Access for Transformative Drugs, led by Benjamin Rome, MD, MPH, you will examine how GLP-1 receptor agonists are changing the treatment of diabetes, obesity, and related cardiometabolic conditions—and what that means for coverage, affordability, and health system performance. This course traces GLP-1 medications from basic science and early diabetes indications to current obesity and cardiometabolic uses. During the course, you will consider how patents, delivery devices, pricing, and competition for these therapies are likely to shape the next decade. 

You will see how GLP-1 medications reveal pressure points across payers, PBMs, and benefit design; how direct-to-consumer models and compounding pathways emerged in response to shortages and coverage gaps; and how value, cost-effectiveness, and budget impact frameworks inform decisions in the U.S. and abroad. Using GLP-1 based therapies as a running case, you will build a practical framework you can apply to this and future high-cost, high-value therapies. 

Learning Objectives

  • Summarize the history of GLP-1 medications and the evidence supporting their safety and effectiveness for diabetes, obesity, and related conditions.
  • Analyze how policies related to patent protection and competition shape the costs and availability of GLP-1 medications.
  • Explain how value, cost-effectiveness, and budget impact frameworks affect coverage and pricing decisions in the US and abroad.
  • Outline how GLP‑1 medications are adopted and accessed across different payers, patient groups, and identify key barriers to use.
  • Describe the alternative access pathways that have emerged for GLP-1 based therapies and other medications in response to coverage restrictions.
  • Apply a framework to evaluate how policies and strategies can promote broader access to GLP-1 medications and other transformative new medicines.
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Who Should Participate

Health care professionals throughout the industry seeking better understanding of the health care system

What Will You Gain

  • A brief history of how GLP-1 medications evolved and what makes their clinical impact distinctive.
  • An understanding of how patent and regulatory exclusivities on drugs and delivery devices influence GLP-1 medication pricing and availability over time.
  • A working knowledge of how different U.S. payers cover GLP-1 medications for diabetes and obesity—and how this impacts patient access and adherence.
  • Fluency with value and affordability concepts and how they’re applied to GLP-1 medications.
  • Insight into alternative access pathways, and when they expand access, where they introduce risk, and how they may widen or narrow disparities.
  • A generalizable framework for evaluating new high-cost therapies across different organizational and policy contexts. 

About the Course

HealthXcelerate courses offer a foundational, 360‑degree view of the health care ecosystem, drawing on the expertise of Harvard Medical School faculty and industry leaders. With a focus on the patient experience, the curriculum explores how the U.S. system compares with those of other countries, how clinical care connects to the broader health care industry, and how patients navigate and influence the system. Learners who complete HealthXcelerate courses build fluency and credibility in communicating key issues, critically assessing barriers to quality and access, and identifying opportunities for leadership and innovation.  

Who Should Participate

This program will benefit industry and clinical leaders across the health care ecosystem; research and innovation managers with increasing global responsibility; entrepreneurs and consultants; business and technology professionals who work closely with health care organizations; and those transitioning into the health care space. 

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Frequently Asked Questions

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Additional FAQs

GLP-1-Based Therapies: Cost, Coverage, and Access for Transformative Drugs is an online course from Harvard Medical School examining the clinical impact, health economics, payer coverage dynamics, and access challenges surrounding GLP-1 receptor agonists and related anti-obesity medications.

  • Format: 100% online, flexible, and interactive
  • Focus Areas: Incretin science, obesity and diabetes economics, employer health plan coverage, payer formulary tiers, and downstream health system implications

This course will benefit industry and clinical leaders across the health care ecosystem; research and innovation managers with increasing global responsibility; entrepreneurs and consultants; business and technology professionals who work closely with health care organizations; and those transitioning into the health care space.  

This course may particularly interest professionals such as:

  • Payer executives, pharmacy directors, and PBM formulary managers
  • Corporate HR and employee benefits directors evaluating health plan design
  • Biopharma commercial leaders in metabolic disease and obesity markets
  • Health tech and digital health founders building weight-management and metabolic care platforms 

The curriculum explores the clinical science of incretin-based drugs, cost-effectiveness analyses, budget impact models for payers and employers, and equitable patient access strategies.

Key Topics Include:

  • Clinical Mechanisms & Pipeline: GLP-1, GIP, and glucagon receptor agonists, clinical efficacy data, and emerging cardiovascular/renal indications.
  • Health Economics & Budget Impact: Balancing short-term drug acquisition costs against long-term reductions in obesity-related comorbidities.
  • Coverage Policies & Payer Strategies: Prior authorizations, step therapies, lifestyle management requirements, and employer opt-in/opt-out decisions.
  • Supply Chain & Equity Challenges: Compounding pharmacy dynamics, global drug shortages, and mitigating socioeconomic disparities in access. 

No prerequisites or clinical degrees are required. The course bridges scientific principles with economic and policy frameworks, making it directly relevant to clinicians and non-clinical business leaders alike.

Participants who successfully complete the course requirements receive a Certificate of Completion from Harvard Medical School.

  • Validates specialized knowledge regarding the economics, policy, and clinical deployment of transformative metabolic therapies.
  • Serves as a verified credential for professional portfolios, resumes, and LinkedIn profiles.

The course is delivered entirely online in an asynchronous format, requiring approximately 3 to 4 hours total.

  • Learning Components: Video lectures from clinical and economic experts, real-world coverage case studies, interactive financial models, and discussion forums.
  • Flexibility: Self-paced design that integrates seamlessly with full-time professional schedules.

HealthXcelerate courses are designed by Harvard Medical School educators and feature leading faculty and experts. This course is led by:

Benjamin Rome, MD, MPH
Assistant Professor of Medicine, Harvard Medical School
Health Policy Researcher and Physician, Brigham and Women's Hospital

This course provides health care professionals across the ecosystem a better understanding of the financial, clinical, and policy frameworks required to design sustainable benefits packages, forecast drug uptake, or develop companion digital health solutions.

Key Benefits:

  • Forecast the true multi-year ROI and budget impact of covering anti-obesity medications
  • Design effective digital health companion programs that improve medication adherence and outcomes
  • Navigate the shifting payer, PBM, and regulatory landscape governing metabolic drugs

HealthXcelerate programs provide timely, targeted executive insights on rapidly evolving health care topics, designed for rapid application without the multi-year commitment of traditional graduate degrees.

  • Timely Insights: Addresses real-time market disruptions and emerging drug classes.
  • High Efficiency: Completed over several hours instead of semesters.
  • Frictionless Enrollment: Open registration with no formal academic application process.

Enroll online directly as an individual or Contact Our Team for inquiries regarding group enrollment discounts.

Faculty Leads

Each course within the HealthXcelerate program features Harvard Medical School faculty and leading experts in the field.

Benjamin Rome.

Benjamin Rome

MD, MPH

  • Assistant Professor of Medicine, Harvard Medical School
  • Health Policy Researcher and Physician, Brigham and Women's Hospital

Susanna Bianzano, TA CRM Medicine, Boehringer Ingelheim

HealthXcelerate is an excellent opportunity to learn more about all aspects of the U.S. health care system. The flexible course framework makes it easier to integrate into my busy work days than other programs.

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