Did Stephen A. Smith confirm which specific GLP-1 drug he takes?

No. Smith has confirmed GLP-1 use publicly on First Take and discussed its health effects, but he has not publicly named the specific agent, dose, or prescribing physician to the HealthRX Medical Team's knowledge. Attributing a specific drug to him would go beyond what the public record supports.

What is the cheapest legitimate way to access semaglutide in 2025?

For commercially insured patients, manufacturer savings cards can reduce cost to as low as $25 per month if the plan covers the drug. For uninsured patients, the lowest-cost legally available option shifted significantly after the FDA resolved the semaglutide shortage in early 2025, which narrowed the basis for compounding. Checking Novo Nordisk's patient assistance program and GoodRx pricing at multiple local pharmacies are reasonable starting points.

Does Medicare cover Wegovy or Zepbound for weight loss?

Not currently, under existing statutory law. CMS proposed a rule in 2024 that would allow Part D plans to cover anti-obesity medications, but it had not been finalized as of this writing. Patients with type 2 diabetes may access semaglutide (Ozempic) through Part D for that indication.

Are there cardiovascular benefits beyond weight loss with GLP-1s?

Yes. The SELECT trial, published in the New England Journal of Medicine in 2023, showed a 20% reduction in major adverse cardiovascular events with semaglutide 2.4 mg versus placebo in adults with overweight or obesity and established cardiovascular disease, independent of diabetes status. This cardiovascular outcome data is now part of the FDA-approved prescribing information for Wegovy.

Is compounded semaglutide safe?

The FDA has raised concerns about compounded semaglutide, particularly products using unapproved salt forms and products from facilities without proper outsourcing facility registration. Following the resolution of the shortage, the regulatory basis for widespread compounding narrowed. Patients should verify facility credentials and consult the current FDA guidance before pursuing this route.

What Stephen A. Smith's GLP-1 Protocol Would Cost Outside a Celebrity Context

By HealthRX Medical Team

Published Jul 14, 2025Updated Jul 14, 2025Last reviewed Jul 14, 2025

At a glance

Public confirmation: Stephen A. Smith discussed GLP-1 use and its health effects on First Take (ESPN, public broadcast)
Drug family: GLP-1 receptor agonists (semaglutide or tirzepatide most commonly cited in public discourse)
List price range: $936 to $1,349/month for branded agents (2024 wholesale acquisition cost data)
Insurance coverage: Highly variable; prior authorization required by most plans; Medicare Part D excludes weight-loss indication
Compounding option: Existed during FDA shortage period; regulatory status actively shifting
Clinical evidence base: Strong, with cardiovascular outcome data from SELECT trial (NEJM, 2023)

The Public Record: What Stephen A. Smith Actually Said

Stephen A. Smith, the ESPN First Take host and one of American sports media's most visible personalities, publicly confirmed on-air that he has used a GLP-1 medication. In those discussions, Smith described the drug's effect on his appetite and his overall health in positive terms. He did not, to the HealthRX Medical Team's knowledge as of this writing, name the specific GLP-1 agent, disclose his prescribing physician, or detail the dose he was on.

That distinction matters editorially. Smith confirmed GLP-1 use. Everything beyond that, including which specific molecule, what dose, and for how long, is not part of the public record and will not be treated as fact here.

What his public disclosure does is add a high-profile voice to a drug conversation that is already reshaping primary care. According to a 2023 KFF Health Tracking Poll, roughly 1 in 8 American adults have taken a GLP-1 medication. When a figure with Smith's reach speaks positively about a drug class on a daily sports program watched by millions, it influences how viewers search, ask questions, and approach their own physicians.

What a GLP-1 Actually Does: The Clinical Mechanism

GLP-1 receptor agonists mimic glucagon-like peptide-1, a hormone secreted by intestinal L-cells in response to food intake. The drug binds GLP-1 receptors in the pancreas, brain, and gut, producing four clinically relevant effects: it stimulates glucose-dependent insulin secretion, suppresses glucagon release, slows gastric emptying, and signals satiety to the hypothalamus.

Semaglutide (the active ingredient in Ozempic and Wegovy) is the most studied agent in this class. The STEP 1 trial, published in the New England Journal of Medicine in 2021, showed a mean weight reduction of 14.9% body weight over 68 weeks in adults without diabetes, compared with 2.4% on placebo. For a 250-pound person, that is roughly 37 pounds.

The cardiovascular case for GLP-1s strengthened substantially with the SELECT trial. Published in the New England Journal of Medicine in 2023, SELECT enrolled 17,604 adults with overweight or obesity and established cardiovascular disease, no diabetes. Semaglutide 2.4 mg weekly reduced the composite of cardiovascular death, nonfatal myocardial infarction, and nonfatal stroke by 20% versus placebo over a median 34 months. That cardiovascular signal is why cardiologists, not just endocrinologists, are now prescribing in this class.

Tirzepatide (Mounjaro, Zepbound) adds a glucose-dependent insulinotropic polypeptide (GIP) agonist effect. The SURMOUNT-1 trial in NEJM 2022 showed up to 20.9% weight loss at the highest dose, making it the most potent approved agent for weight management as of this writing.

The Side-Effect Profile a Patient Needs to Know

The most common adverse effects are gastrointestinal: nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, and constipation. In the STEP trials, nausea occurred in approximately 44% of semaglutide-treated patients, though most cases were mild to moderate and resolved over the first weeks of dose escalation. The FDA prescribing information for Wegovy lists pancreatitis, gallbladder disease, heart rate increase, and suicidal ideation as warnings requiring clinical monitoring. A personal or family history of medullary thyroid carcinoma or MEN2 is a contraindication.

The HealthRX Medical Team stresses that none of these risks is reason to avoid the drug class categorically. They are reasons to use it under proper medical supervision, with documented indication, regular follow-up, and not based on a social media post or a television segment alone.

The Real Cost Breakdown: Four Access Tiers

This is where the celebrity context becomes actively misleading if viewers assume their experience will mirror what Smith described. Here is what cost and access actually look like across four realistic patient situations.

Tier 1: Commercial Insurance With Coverage

Some commercial plans cover Wegovy or Zepbound for obesity (BMI >= 30, or >= 27 with a weight-related comorbidity). Coverage is never automatic. Patients must typically obtain prior authorization by documenting BMI, comorbidities, and prior attempts at lifestyle intervention. Many plans also require step therapy, meaning the patient must first try and fail a cheaper agent.

When a commercial plan does cover a GLP-1, copays vary widely. Manufacturer savings cards (Novo Nordisk's Wegovy savings offer, for example) can reduce out-of-pocket cost to as low as $25 per month for eligible commercially insured patients, though income thresholds and plan exclusions apply. Novo Nordisk's patient assistance page outlines current terms.

Tier 2: No Insurance, or Insurance That Excludes Weight Loss

List price for Wegovy (semaglutide 2.4 mg, four pens) was approximately $1,349 per month as of early 2024. Ozempic (semaglutide up to 2 mg, approved for type 2 diabetes) ran approximately $936 per month. GoodRx and similar discount programs can reduce cash prices at certain pharmacies, but savings are inconsistent by zip code.

For a patient earning a median U.S. household income of roughly $74,000, an unsubsidized $1,100 to $1,400 monthly drug cost represents 18 to 23% of gross monthly income. This is not a hypothetical barrier. It is the structural reality that constrains who can sustain this therapy long-term.

Tier 3: Medicare Part D

This is the most significant access gap in the current system. Under existing law, Medicare Part D cannot cover drugs approved solely for weight loss. CMS has explicitly addressed this statutory restriction. A 2024 proposed rule from CMS would allow Medicare Part D plans to cover anti-obesity medications for Medicare beneficiaries, which would represent the largest single expansion of GLP-1 access in the U.S. As of this writing, that rule has not been finalized and the statutory barrier remains in place for weight-loss indications. Patients with a type 2 diabetes diagnosis may access Ozempic through Part D with standard formulary and prior authorization rules.

Tier 4: Compounding Pharmacies

During the period when semaglutide was on the FDA's drug shortage list (which ran from 2022 through early 2025 for various strengths), FDA regulations permitted state-licensed compounding pharmacies and 503B outsourcing facilities to compound semaglutide. Compounded semaglutide was often priced at $200 to $400 per month, making it the most accessible cash-pay option.

The FDA removed semaglutide injection from its shortage list in early 2025. Once a drug is no longer in shortage, the regulatory basis for widespread compounding of that drug narrows considerably. FDA has issued warnings about compounded semaglutide products, including concerns about salt forms (semaglutide sodium and acetate rather than the base form used in approved products), superpotent doses, and lack of sterility assurance. Patients pursuing compounding routes after the shortage resolution do so in an actively shifting regulatory environment and should verify their pharmacy's 503B or state licensure status.

Why This Gap Is a Public Health Issue, Not Just a Personal Finance Issue

A 2023 analysis in JAMA estimated that more than 70% of U.S. adults are living with overweight or obesity. GLP-1 receptor agonists are the most effective pharmacological tool available for that population, with a cardiovascular mortality benefit that now has trial-level evidence behind it. When access to that tool is effectively gated by income, insurance type, or zip code, the clinical gains documented in trials do not reach the patients who bear the greatest burden of obesity-related disease.

Smith's public discussion of his GLP-1 use almost certainly increased awareness and prompted many viewers to ask their doctors about the drug. That is not a bad outcome. The risk is that viewers in Tier 2 or Tier 3 situations hear a celebrity's positive experience and do not receive accurate information about the structural barriers they will face. The HealthRX Medical Team believes this gap between celebrity disclosure and real-world access is precisely where patient education needs to happen.

What to Do If You Are Interested in GLP-1 Therapy

The HealthRX Medical Team recommends these concrete steps for any patient evaluating GLP-1 access:

Confirm your BMI and whether you have a qualifying comorbidity (type 2 diabetes, hypertension, dyslipidemia, sleep apnea, or cardiovascular disease) before calling your insurer.
Request a prior authorization from your prescriber before assuming your plan will deny coverage. Denial rates vary significantly and some plans approve on first submission.
Ask your prescriber whether Ozempic (diabetes indication) rather than Wegovy (obesity indication) is clinically appropriate, since formulary coverage for the diabetes indication is often broader.
Check the manufacturer's patient assistance programs. Novo Nordisk and Eli Lilly both maintain programs for uninsured or underinsured patients that are separate from the commercial savings card programs.
If compounding is under consideration, verify the pharmacy holds 503B outsourcing facility status and that compounded semaglutide is still legally available under current FDA guidance at the time of your inquiry.

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