President Trump has announced a deal with drugmakers Eli Lilly and Novo Nordisk to expand coverage and reduce prices for their popular obesity treatments Zepbound and Wegovy.

Access to the drugs has been difficult for many patients because of the high costs which can be around $500 per month or higher.

Few state and federally funded Medicaid programs, for people with low incomes, offer coverage. And employers and insurers that provide commercial coverage are wary of paying for these drugs in part because of the large number of patients that might use them.

With the deal, patients that use Medicare, the federally funded program mainly for people ages 65 and over, will have expanded coverage of the drugs for obesity starting next year.

According to the administration, some lower prices also will be phased in for patients without coverage.

The obesity drugs work by targeting hormones in the gut and brain that affect appetite and feelings of fullness. In clinical trials, they helped people shed between 15% and 22% of their body weight -- up to 50 pounds or more in many cases.

It’s not yet clear how much the price drop will be felt by consumers.