In Focus delivers deeper coverage of the political, cultural, and ideological issues shaping America.
asserted
Focus → deliver → America
Published daily by senior writers and experts, these in-depth pieces go beyond the headlines to give readers the full picture.
asserted
pieces → publish → picture
You can find our full list of In Focus pieces here.
asserted
You → find → pieces
Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. claimed the nationwide drop in obesity rates as a victory for his Make America Healthy Again movement, but credit likely should go to the pharmaceutical companies he derides for producing GLP-1 weight loss drugs.
asserted
he → claim → drugs
During his 25-minute speech at the Republican midterm convention in Dallas, Texas, on Thursday night, Kennedy strongly implied the rapid drop in obesity rates since their peak in 2022 is attributable to a widespread adoption of improved eating habits and increased physical activity spurred by the MAHA movement.
asserted
drop → imply → movement
“Since President [Donald] Trump took office, obesity is down by 7% after 40 years of increasing,” Kennedy said after citing improvements in American eating habits, without citing GLP-1 uptake.
asserted
Kennedy → take → uptake
Based on Gallup’s National Health and Well-Being Index from July, the prevalence of obesity has declined from about 40% in 2022 to about 37% thus far in 2026, a roughly 3-percentage-point drop, or a 7.8% relative decline.
asserted
prevalence → base → 2026
That means nearly 1 out of every 12 people who were obese in 2022 are no longer obese in 2026, based on the best available numbers.
asserted
who → mean → numbers
Multiple times during the speech, Kennedy, a fierce critic of the pharmaceutical industry, railed against “Big Pharma,” citing the industry’s power over regulatory agencies like the Food and Drug Administration and its connections to the Democratic Party.
asserted
Kennedy → rail → Party
Although he did outline how the Trump administration has worked to bring down prescription drug prices, Kennedy did not credit GLP-1 products for the nation’s collective weight loss.
asserted
Kennedy → outline → loss
Medical experts, though, say GLP-1s from Novo Nordisk and Eli Lilly are the primary reason why Americans have shed pounds at a greater clip, rather than MAHA-influenced lifestyle changes.
asserted
Americans → say → changes
Roughly 11% of Americans are currently on a GLP-1 medication, according to Gallup, up from just 3% in 2024.
uncertain
% → accord → 2024
About 15% of Americans say they have taken a GLP-1 in their lifetime.
asserted
they → say → lifetime
Dr. Angela Fitch, president of the Obesity Medicine Association, told the Washington Examiner that only with “the addition of pharmacotherapy” have patients, particularly with severe obesity, been able to reverse disease progression.
asserted
patients → tell → progression
“I think it is access to GLP-1,” Fitch said.
asserted
Fitch → think → GLP-1
“We know that lifestyle changes alone have not produced sustained weight reduction long term that reverses the disease of obesity.”
asserted
that → know → obesity
MAHA lifestyle factors likely not driving the trend
MAHA messaging has perhaps influenced positive lifestyle trends, but these changes are likely not the reason for declines in obesity.
asserted
changes → drive → obesity
A July survey from the global market research firm Nielsen found purchases of ultra-processed foods in the United States over the past year have declined by about 7% compared to minimally processed foods.
asserted
purchases → find → foods
Recent fitness industry studies have also suggested that Americans are exercising more than in years past, particularly younger and better-educated adults.
uncertain
Americans → suggest → years
But because of the rapid decline in obesity since its peak in 2022, medical experts credit GLP-1s rather than lifestyle changes like diet and exercise.
asserted
experts → credit → diet
Dr. Hemalkumar Mehta, associate professor of epidemiology at Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, told the Washington Examiner that it is “highly unlikely that lifestyle changes alone produced a decline of this size this quickly.”
asserted
changes → tell → size
Mehta, who specializes in how comorbidities like obesity affect disease outcomes, said there was little to no change in obesity rates from 2013 to 2023, before GLP-1s were widely used.
asserted
GLP-1s → specialize → 2023
Evidence from before the widespread adoption of GLP-1s also indicates that lifestyle changes alone are not usually enough to reverse obesity long term.
asserted
changes → indicate → obesity
The Look AHEAD clinical trial, for example, compared intensive lifestyle interventions for diabetes and obesity management.
asserted
trial → compare → diabetes
Trial patients who lost between 8% and 10% of their body weight initially regained weight after eight years, such that they were only 4% to 5% less overweight than at the start of the trial.
asserted
they → lose → trial
“Physical activity alone is unlikely to have produced a major decline over the past 3-4 years,” Mehta said via email.
asserted
Mehta → produce → email
Others in Trump administration pushing GLP-1s
Other Trump administration officials have stressed the importance of GLP-1 medications in reducing the chronic disease burden in the U.S.
Dr. Mehmet Oz, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services administrator who serves under Kennedy, is one of the chief proponents of GLP-1 access in the Trump administration, and his agency has made inroads in expanding access to the medication.
Oz’s agency has been at the helm of negotiating most favored nation prescription drug pricing deals to lower prescription costs in the U.S. to levels comparable with other developed countries.
asserted
agency → push → countries
CMS also earlier this year launched the GLP-1 Bridge program to provide eligible Medicare beneficiaries access to GLP-1s with a $50 co-pay.
asserted
CMS → launch → pay
The pilot program ends in December 2027, pending congressional action to make permanent new rules that cover weight management drugs as a Medicare benefit.
asserted
that → end → benefit
Oz praised GLP-1s during his convention address on Wednesday night, quoting President Donald Trump, who calls the medications the “fat shot,” and crediting the drug class for the drop in obesity rates.
asserted
who → praise → rates
“It’s contributing to a historic American weight loss.
asserted
It → contribute → loss
So many of you look like gazelles tonight, probably for that reason,” Oz said, addressing the crowd.
asserted
Oz → look → crowd
“Medicaid coverage remains thin, with only 13 states programs covering GLP-1s for obesity under fee-for-service as of January 2026,” Mehta said.
asserted
Mehta → remain → January
“Given the high prevalence of obesity in the Medicaid population, expanding access there matters.”
asserted
expanding → give → access
Trump, for his part, has repeatedly touted the so-called “fat drug,” often using an anecdote of an unnamed “extremely obese” friend who highlighted the price disparity of the drugs when comparing the U.S. to Europe, although he admits the drug isn’t working for his friend.
asserted
drug → tout → friend
“I said, ‘Are you taking this stuff?'” Trump said he told his friend.
asserted
he → say → friend
“I said: it’s not working — you look like s***, but he got me going.”
asserted
me → say → *
The Aporia
