Speculation swirled around a report that a single patient – a 79-year-old man – was given access to a powerful new obesity drug that’s still awaiting federal approval.
STAT has learned that Eli Lilly and the Food and Drug Administration allowed one individual to gain access to retatrutide, which has demonstrated the ability to cut weight at comparable levels to bariatric surgery, through a “compassionate use” program typically reserved for patients with serious and immediately life-threatening medical issues.
“Sources told STAT that application drew interest from top health officials,” said STAT reporter Lizzy Lawrence. “Given the demographics and the peculiar nature of the application, I asked the [White House] if this patient was President Trump, who turned 80 a week ago. I did not get a direct answer.”
Ranganath Muniyappa, senior clinician at the National Institutes of Health, requested the drug to treat the unidentified patient for refractory obesity with obstructive sleep apnea and pulmonary hypertension, which can be life-threatening, but three sources familiar with the matter told STAT the unusual request caught the attention of top health officials – and suggested the individual was well connected.
“White House spokesperson Kush Desai directed STAT’s inquiry to the Health and Human Services Department,” Lawrence reported. “In response to STAT’s question about whether Trump has obstructive sleep apnea and pulmonary hypertension, Desai said a White House memo detailing Trump’s most recent medical evaluation ‘covers this.’ The memo makes no mention of obstructive sleep apnea or pulmonary hypertension.”
“HHS spokesperson Emily Hilliard did not address the retatrutide application or the patient’s identity when responding to STAT’s questions,” the reporter added.
Social media users gathered around a similar conclusion about the patient’s identity.
“I mean this couldn’t possible be anyone else, right?” speculated the widely followed Bluesky user Michah.
“Author asks if the patient was Trump — the White House won’t say,” said Lawfare’s Eric Columbus.
“Really jaw-dropping,” goggled Wired editor Tim Marchman. “STAT can’t say with 100% certainty that Donald Trump got a compassionate use exemption—usually reserved for the terminally ill—for an experimental drug to treat ‘refractory obesity with obstructive sleep apnea and pulmonary hypertension.’ They got a lot of non-denials, though!”
“Interesting to note the difference between the URL and the current title,” pointed out Bluesky user Brendan Keefe, who noticed Trump’s name in the URL.
“Compassionate use you say,” wondered HuffPost’s Paul Blumenthal.
“I resent how this administration makes me feel like a conspiracy theorist,” huffed author Elizabeth Bear.
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