GLP-1 Savings Cards: 5 Fine-Print Details to Check First

GLP-1 savings cards really can cut your pharmacy price, sometimes to $25 a month. Whether they work for you comes down to five pieces of fine print: your type of insurance, whether your plan covers the drug, the monthly cap, the expiry date, and which pharmacy and product the card accepts. Below, each one is checked against the manufacturers' own 2026 terms.

A friend texts you "Wegovy for $25!" and the pharmacy rings up $300. Nobody lied. The difference is in the footnotes.

1. Are you on Medicare, Medicaid, TRICARE or VA coverage?

This is the first question every manufacturer copay card asks, and for millions of people the answer ends the conversation.

• Novo Nordisk (Wegovy, Ozempic): You can't use the savings offer if you're "enrolled in any federal or state health care program with prescription drug coverage." The terms list Medicaid, Medicare, VA, DOD and TRICARE as examples. They also say that FEHB plans, ACA marketplace plans and state employee plans don't count as government programs for this offer. That surprises a lot of federal and state workers, in a good way.
• Lilly (Zepbound, Mounjaro): The exclusion list is longer: Medicaid, Medicare (including Part D and Medicare Advantage), Medigap, DoD, VA, TRICARE and state drug assistance programs. If you join one of these after activating the card, you're supposed to call Lilly.

Why the rule exists: The federal Anti-Kickback Statute. The HHS Office of Inspector General has warned that drugmakers can be liable if their coupons steer people into drugs that federal programs pay for. That's why the pharmacist may have to confirm that no government claim was filed for your prescription.

If you're on Medicare: The copay cards are out, but other routes may be open. From July 1, 2026, the temporary Medicare GLP-1 Bridge charges a $50 copay per monthly fill of Wegovy, Foundayo or the Zepbound KwikPen for people who qualify. Cash self-pay prices are another route, and Novo says Medicare and Medicaid members may use its self-pay options. Medicare.gov warns that discount-card purchases don't count toward your Part D deductible or out-of-pocket limit. Our Medicare Bridge guide explains who qualifies.

2. Does your plan actually cover the drug?

"Savings card" can mean two very different products, and the fine print tells you which one you have.

• Copay card (your plan covers the drug): This is where the $25 headlines come from. Your plan pays first, and the card pays some or all of what's left.
• "Not covered" card (you have commercial insurance, but it excludes the drug): This one is more of a fixed cash price. Lilly's Mounjaro card, for example, lets commercially insured people whose plan doesn't cover Mounjaro pay "as low as $499" for a 1-month fill. You still need commercial insurance to use it at all.
• Self-pay (no insurance involved): You pay the manufacturer's cash price through its pharmacy program. Novo's terms say these purchases can't be submitted for reimbursement and don't count toward your deductible or out-of-pocket maximum.

Before you enroll, look up your plan's drug list. If you're not sure how, see our guide to reading a health plan formulary.

3. What is the monthly or yearly cap?

"Pay as little as $25" always comes with a maximum, and it's the maximum that decides your real price.

Card (2026 terms)	Pay as little as	Max savings	Yearly limit
Wegovy (Novo)	$25	$100 per 1-month fill	Not stated
Ozempic (Novo)	$25	$100 per month	Up to 48 months
Zepbound single-dose pen (Lilly)	$25	$100 per 1-month fill	$1,300 and 13 fills per calendar year
Mounjaro single-dose pen (Lilly)	$25	$150 per 1-month fill	$1,950 and 13 fills per calendar year

Here's how that works at the counter. Say your plan puts a GLP-1 on a tier with a $150 copay. A $100 cap brings you down to $50. Now say you're still in a high deductible and owe close to the full price for the month. The same $100 card barely dents the bill. That's the $300 surprise from the opening scene.

One more question for your insurer: does the money the card pays count toward your deductible? Some plans count only what you pay yourself. If yours works that way, you could hit a bigger bill later in the year. Our post on why the advertised price can differ from the bill covers this in more detail.

4. When does the offer expire, and what happens at the next refill?

Savings programs have end dates, and introductory prices end even sooner.

• Lilly's Zepbound and Mounjaro savings cards say the card "expires and savings end on 12/31/2026." Lilly can change or end the terms at any time.
• Novo's introductory self-pay price is $199 a month for the first two monthly fills of the lowest Wegovy or Ozempic pen doses, "through December 31, 2026." After those two fills, it goes up to the standard self-pay price: $349 a month for most Wegovy pen doses, $399 for Wegovy HD 7.2 mg, and $499 for Ozempic 2 mg.
• Wegovy pill self-pay starts at $149 a month for the 1.5 mg dose. It's $199 for 4 mg and $299 for 9 mg and 25 mg.
• Zepbound KwikPen self-pay is $299 for 2.5 mg and $399 for 5 mg. For 7.5 mg and up, it's $449, but only if each refill is completed within 45 days of the last one. Miss that window and regular prices apply: $499 for 7.5 mg and $699 for 10 to 15 mg.

That 45-day rule matters in real life. A vacation, a delayed prescription renewal or a dose pause can quietly move you up a price tier. Put the refill date somewhere you'll actually see it. GLPily's shot log and reminders are one option. A calendar alert works too.

The government site TrumpRx.gov, launched in February 2026, also lists cash prices. According to the White House, it either links to manufacturer channels or provides coupons. Its GLP-1 listings at launch matched the ranges above: "as low as" $149 for the Wegovy pill, $199 for the injectables and $299 for Zepbound, depending on dose. The same terms and expiry dates still apply behind each listing.

5. Which pharmacy and which exact product?

A card can be valid and still not work at your pharmacy or for your version of the drug.

• Product form: Lilly's Zepbound savings apply only to the listed single-dose pen and KwikPen NDCs. The Mounjaro card covers only the single-dose pen. On the Medicare Bridge, Zepbound is covered as the KwikPen only, not single-dose vials or pens.
• Pharmacy: Novo's copay offer works at participating retail pharmacies. If you use mail order, you send in a reimbursement form within 180 days of the fill. Novo's self-pay prices go through NovoCare Pharmacy.
• Fill counts: Lilly caps fills per calendar year (13 for the pens, 11 for the KwikPen "not covered" offer). Eleven 28-day fills cover about 308 days, so a January starter can use them up before the year ends.
• State limits: Lilly's terms exclude Massachusetts and California residents in certain cases where a generic or therapeutic equivalent is available.

Compounded or "research" products aren't covered by any of these programs. If a seller claims otherwise, read our guide on checking whether an online pharmacy is legitimate.

A two-minute savings card checklist

Copy this before you enroll:

• My insurance type: commercial / marketplace / FEHB / state plan / Medicare / Medicaid / TRICARE / VA / none
• My plan covers this drug for my diagnosis: yes / no / not sure
• Card type: copay card / "not covered" card / self-pay
• Max savings per fill: $____ Yearly cap: $____
• Offer ends: ____ Refill window: ____ days
• Product form covered (pen, KwikPen, vial, pill): ____
• Pharmacy that accepts it: ____
• Card payments count toward my deductible: yes / no (ask the plan)
• Screenshot of the terms saved on: ____

Common questions

Can I use a Wegovy or Zepbound savings card if I have Medicare?

No. Both companies exclude Medicare beneficiaries from their copay cards, including people on Part D and Medicare Advantage. You may qualify for the Medicare GLP-1 Bridge, which has a $50 copay. Self-pay prices are another option, but those purchases don't count toward your Part D limits.

Why does my savings card only take $100 off?

Most GLP-1 copay cards have a maximum savings amount. For Wegovy, Ozempic and Zepbound, it's $100 per 1-month fill. For Mounjaro, it's $150. If your plan's share of the cost is bigger than the cap, you pay the difference.

What happens to the savings card after December 31, 2026?

Lilly's 2026 cards say savings end on 12/31/2026, and Novo's introductory self-pay prices run through the same date. Manufacturers often renew programs, but the terms can change. Check the official terms page in late December before your first fill of 2027.