A customs investigator holds a package of Ozempic during a presentation of seized drugs and assets on the premises of the Hamburg customs investigation office in Germany on April 17, 2025. 

Over half a million Californians could lose access to the hugely popular GLP-1 weight loss drugs starting Jan. 1, 2026, after the state government decided to deny some Medi-Cal coverage for the prescription drugs in an effort to save money. 

GLP-1 drugs have become a blockbuster hit for people aiming to lose weight following the Food and Drug Administration’s approval of the name-brand drug Wegovy in 2021. California’s Medi-Cal program, the state’s Medicaid program that covers low-income people and those with disabilities, was paying for over 660,000 people to take various GLP-1 drugs in 2023, CalMatters reported. 

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The state will no longer cover those prescriptions if the patient was prescribed the drug for strictly weight loss. However, the state will still cover certain GLP-1 drugs if they are........

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