The U.S. faces a growing public health and economic challenge: obesity. More than 40 percent of American adults are obese, costing the health care system an estimated $173 billion annually. And that’s just the tip of the iceberg. Beyond direct medical costs, obesity reduces workforce participation, strains public infrastructure, and slows economic growth.

As Congress works to address this challenge, it needs better tools to account for the far-reaching economic and societal costs of obesity and the efforts to mitigate it. To that end, the Congressional Budget Office should refine how it evaluates the long-term impact of treatment for obesity. As Congress considers proposals to expand Medicare coverage for weight loss drugs, the Congressional Budget Office should adopt scoring methods that account for the full economic and fiscal implications of these therapies.

A new class of therapies — GLP-1 receptor agonists — shows promise to change the trajectory of obesity and its related burdens. Originally developed to treat diabetes, GLP-1s such as semaglutide (Wegovy, Ozempic) and tirzepatide (Mounjaro, Zepbound) are demonstrating significant benefits for weight loss and for reducing such comorbidities as type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular disease.

Clinical results are beginning to reshape medical practice. For example, the American College of Cardiology recently recommended GLP-1s as a first-line treatment for obesity in patients at risk of cardiovascular disease, citing their superior efficacy over lifestyle interventions and favorable safety profile compared to surgery. Clinical trials have........

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