Analysis: CT weight-loss program reduced medical spending growth

Hartford Business Journal – Thursday, May 21, 2026
By Greg Bordonaro

Connecticut’s effort to rein in rising spending on weight-loss drugs in the state employee health plan helped slow medical cost growth among participating members, according to a new state-commissioned analysis, though the report notes limitations in its methodology.

The report, prepared by consulting firm Segal for the state comptroller’s office, examined the FlyteHealth program, launched in 2023 to provide weight management services to members of the State of Connecticut Health Plan. Under the program, eligible members receive physician-supervised obesity treatment and related chronic disease care, including oversight of GLP-1 prescribing.

Comptroller Sean Scanlon, whose office oversees the state employee health plan, said the program was launched after spending on GLP-1 weight-loss drugs was rising about 50% year over year.

The Segal report found that participants’ medical costs grew more slowly than those of similar nonparticipants, producing estimated medical savings of about $106 per member per month in the program’s first year.

About 11,567 members enrolled in the program through June 2025, according to the report. Segal’s analysis focused on 4,980 participants with sufficient pre- and post-enrollment claims data for comparison.

The report also estimated $29.7 million in projected prescription drug cost avoidance, largely because many participants were prescribed lower-cost diabetes medications such as Ozempic instead of higher-cost obesity drugs such as Wegovy. However, Segal said it excluded those pharmacy savings from its return-on-investment calculation, saying they could not be attributed solely to the FlyteHealth program.

Including program fees of an estimated $138 per participant per month, Segal found the program generated 77 cents in medical savings for every dollar spent in its first year, resulting in a net cost of about $32 per participant per month.

The report cautioned that participants who enrolled may differ from nonparticipants in ways that are difficult to measure, including greater motivation to improve their health, which could affect the findings.

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