Getting a Wegovy prescription starts with a medical evaluation to confirm you meet the eligibility criteria, followed by blood work, and often an insurance prior authorization process that can take days to weeks. The path is straightforward, but there are several steps between deciding you want the medication and actually filling it at a pharmacy.
Who Qualifies for Wegovy
The FDA approved Wegovy for adults with a BMI of 30 or higher, or a BMI between 27 and 29.9 with at least one weight-related health condition such as high blood pressure or high cholesterol. For teens aged 12 and older, the threshold is a BMI at or above the 95th percentile for their age and sex. These are firm cutoffs. If your BMI falls below these thresholds, most prescribers won’t be able to write the prescription, and insurance certainly won’t cover it.
There are also conditions that rule out Wegovy entirely. You cannot take it if you or a close family member has a history of medullary thyroid cancer, or if you have a condition called MEN 2 (a rare inherited syndrome involving tumors in multiple glands). A prior serious allergic reaction to semaglutide, the active ingredient, is also a hard stop.
Which Providers Can Prescribe It
You don’t need to see a specialist. Primary care doctors and internists prescribe Wegovy routinely. If you’d prefer someone with deeper expertise in weight management, obesity medicine specialists and endocrinologists are good options. Gastroenterologists who focus on obesity can be especially helpful if you’re concerned about digestive side effects, since nausea and other GI issues are common with this class of medication.
Nurse practitioners and physician assistants also prescribe Wegovy. They write roughly 40% of all weight-loss medication prescriptions in the U.S., though their prescribing authority varies by state. Some can prescribe independently, while others need a supervising physician’s sign-off.
Telehealth is another option. Several online platforms now connect patients with providers who can evaluate and prescribe Wegovy remotely. Just be cautious about services offering compounded versions of semaglutide rather than the brand-name product, as these are not FDA-approved.
What Happens at Your Appointment
Your provider will measure your height and weight to calculate your BMI, review your medical history, and ask about previous weight-loss efforts, including diets, exercise programs, or other medications you’ve tried. They’ll also look at your current health conditions, particularly anything weight-related like high blood pressure, high cholesterol, sleep apnea, or type 2 diabetes. This information isn’t just for clinical decision-making. It also forms the basis of the documentation your insurer will likely require.
Expect your provider to discuss a treatment plan that pairs Wegovy with a reduced-calorie diet and increased physical activity. Insurers typically require evidence that the medication is part of a broader lifestyle approach, not a standalone fix.
Blood Work You’ll Likely Need
Most prescribers want lab results from within the past six months before starting you on Wegovy. If your recent bloodwork is outdated or incomplete, you’ll need new draws. Here’s what they’re looking for:
- Blood sugar levels: A hemoglobin A1c test shows your average blood sugar over the past two to three months, and a fasting glucose captures where you are right now. Together, these reveal whether you have prediabetes or diabetes, which affects how your provider monitors you on the medication.
- Metabolic panel: This single panel checks kidney function, liver enzymes, and electrolyte balance. Kidney markers matter because semaglutide has been linked to rare cases of kidney injury. Liver enzymes establish a baseline before treatment. Electrolytes are important because rapid weight loss and reduced food intake can throw off sodium, potassium, and magnesium.
- Cholesterol and triglycerides: A lipid panel documents your cardiovascular risk before treatment. Many people starting Wegovy have elevated triglycerides, and the medication tends to improve these numbers over time, so having a baseline helps track progress.
- Thyroid function: A TSH test screens for thyroid problems. This is particularly important because Wegovy carries a boxed warning about a potential risk of thyroid tumors. The test won’t detect that risk directly, but it ensures your thyroid is functioning normally before you begin.
- Complete blood count: This checks for anemia or other blood-cell abnormalities that could complicate treatment.
Not every provider orders every one of these tests, but this is the standard panel most will request. If you already have recent results from a physical, bring them to your appointment to save time.
The Insurance and Prior Authorization Process
This is where many people hit a wall. Most commercial insurance plans require prior authorization for Wegovy, and some exclude weight-loss medications from coverage altogether. UnitedHealthcare, for example, typically excludes Wegovy for weight loss but may cover it for cardiovascular risk reduction or fatty liver disease.
When prior authorization is required, your provider’s office submits documentation to your insurer that includes your BMI, relevant health conditions, previous weight-loss therapies you’ve tried, and your treatment plan. The insurer reviews this against their coverage criteria and either approves, denies, or requests additional information. This process can take anywhere from a few days to several weeks.
If you’re denied, your provider can file an appeal. Denials are common, and appeals do succeed, so it’s worth pursuing if your first request is rejected. Ask your provider’s office how they handle appeals, because some are more experienced with this process than others.
What It Costs Out of Pocket
Wegovy’s list price is high, but the manufacturer (Novo Nordisk) offers a savings program that can bring your cost down significantly. With an eligible insurance plan and a copay card from the manufacturer’s website, you could pay as little as $25 per month. The savings program also has options for people without insurance, though the discount may not be as steep.
The savings card is free and available directly on the Wegovy website. It’s worth checking your eligibility before you even schedule your appointment, since cost is often the deciding factor in whether people start or stay on the medication.
How the Dosing Ramp-Up Works
Wegovy isn’t prescribed at full strength from day one. You’ll follow a gradual dose escalation over about four months to minimize nausea and other digestive side effects. The schedule looks like this:
- Weeks 1 through 4: 0.25 mg once weekly
- Weeks 5 through 8: 0.5 mg once weekly
- Weeks 9 through 12: 1 mg once weekly
- Weeks 13 through 16: 1.7 mg once weekly
- Week 17 onward: 1.7 mg or 2.4 mg once weekly (maintenance dose)
The recommended maintenance dose for adults is 2.4 mg, but some people stay at 1.7 mg if the higher dose causes too many side effects. For teens aged 12 and older, the maintenance dose is 2.4 mg. If you struggle with side effects at any step, your provider can hold you at that dose for an extra four weeks before moving up.
Each dose level comes in its own pre-filled injection pen, so your pharmacy will fill a different pen strength at each stage. This also means your provider’s office may need to submit separate prescriptions or prior authorizations as you move through the escalation.
Supply Is No Longer an Issue
Wegovy was in shortage from 2022 through early 2025 due to surging demand, and starter doses were particularly hard to find. As of February 2025, the FDA has determined that the semaglutide injection shortage is resolved. Semaglutide products no longer appear on the FDA’s drug shortage list, so availability at pharmacies should be reliable across all dose strengths.