Kela, the Social Insurance Institution of Finland, on Saturday said its annual drug reimbursements for obesity drugs could increase by billions of euros.
Janne Leinonen, the agency's chief medical director, told Finnish news agancy STT that this is a possibility if weight loss medications entering the market become eligible for reimbursement.
This additional cost would be significant as Kela's annual drug reimbursements now total around 1.8 billion euros.
According to Leinonen, several countries have opted not to reimburse obesity medications due to the explosion of costs.
Domestic news outlets have recently reported that the anti-obesity drug market is booming in Finland, although many struggle to afford the medications. One of the high-profile drugs, Ozempic (semaglutide), even saw shortages last year in Finland.
Governemnt surveys have shown that the Body Mass Index (BMI) of approximately 1.2 million adults in Finland exceeds the obesity threshold. That means an abdominal circumference exceeding 90 centimeters in women and 100 centimeters in men.
Users with an Yle ID can leave comments on our news stories. You can create your Yle ID via this link. Our guidelines on commenting and moderation are explained here.