Davos Reveals CEOs Must Act On GLP-1s

After many years attending Davos, this one felt different. Refreshing, even. A real bias for action. And a shared recognition that some of the biggest problems CEOs face are no longer abstract. They're urgent, human, and solvable.

CEOs pulled me aside, quietly and candidly, asking the same question in different ways: “Health is an economic and workforce priority, how do I address it responsibly? How do I integrate GLP-1s effectively and urgently to meet workforce needs?” 

There was no posturing. There was concern. Pressure. A genuine desire to help employees live healthier lives, without blowing up costs or getting it wrong. CEOs don’t lack intent here. They lack a clear path forward. And that gap is becoming impossible to ignore.

But underneath every one of those conversations was another question: “How do we ensure GLP-1s aren’t another expensive benefit that employees abandon after a few months?”

Let me be direct about something that came up in every single conversation: you're already paying for chronic disease. 

Obesity alone costs the healthcare system nearly $173 billion annually in direct medical expenses. Your company is funding this. It’s showing up in disability claims, clinical and medication costs, productivity loss, healthcare utilization, and turnover.

GLP-1s put a price on the solution, and that makes people uncomfortable. I get it. 

But here's what I kept saying during every conversation: you're confusing the cost of the solution with the cost of the problem. 

Your employees have already decided this matters—GLP-1s are now the most requested benefit across the workforce. Yet at Davos, I watched business leaders wrestle with the same tension: they understand the demand and see the data, but hesitate at the initial investment. That hesitation is risk aversion masquerading as prudence—and it’s costing them.

There’s also the concern that people use GLP-1s as a quick fix and employers won’t reap their long-term benefits. 

That's the right concern. Without adherence, the entire financial model collapses. The clinical benefits don't materialize. The cost savings never appear. You've just added an expensive benefit that generates no return. 

This is why eMed exists. We built a complete, structured program. At-home testing. Consults with doctors. Weekly check-ins. 

The result? More than 90% of people in our program stay on GLP-1s. That's unprecedented in U.S. healthcare. 

GLP-1s are the health intervention of a lifetime. We know they benefit much more than weight loss. GLP-1s improve diabetes, heart health, kidney function, mental health, have enormous impact on women’s health, and the list keeps growing. 

But this pharmaceutical breakthrough is meaningless without the infrastructure to deliver it responsibly. Medication without management is reckless. In the end, the innovation doesn't matter if a program can't support sustained use.

The conversations that happened at Davos made one thing absolutely clear: we're past the inflection point. The question is no longer whether GLP-1s matter. The clinical evidence is overwhelming. The employee demand is undeniable. The question is: which companies will lead this transformation? 

The health intervention of a lifetime is here. What's required now is leadership willing to act on it. How could you not take this opportunity?

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