Trump mocks 'very rich and very fat' friend, says Ozempic failed to work for him

WASHINGTON, DC: President Donald Trump drew attention away from a White House discussion on rural health care Friday, Jan 16, when he launched into an unscripted story about a wealthy friend he said unsuccessfully tried a popular weight-loss d**g.

Midway through the roundtable, Trump described the unnamed man in blunt terms, calling him “very, very rich,” “very powerful,” and “very fat,” before recounting the man’s experience with medication commonly prescribed for weight loss.

Trump claims Ozempic failed to work for his 'fat friend'

Donald Trump recalled the use of weight loss d**g by a friend who also complained to him about its price in the United States.

“A friend of mine who is a very smart guy, very, very rich, very powerful man actually, but he’s very fat,” Trump said. “And he took the fat.. I call it the fat d**g.”

After a brief pause, Trump identified the medication himself, saying, “It was Ozempic… I won’t tell you that.”

According to Trump, the friend was traveling in London at the time and had complained about how much more the d**g costs in the United States compared with the United Kingdom.

Trump said the man pays roughly $1,300 per month in New York, compared with about $87 overseas.

“He’s worth hundreds of millions, billions of dollars,” Trump said, adding that the price difference was “too much to bear.”

But Trump went further, telling the audience he had personally concluded the d**g had failed to work.

“I saw him recently and he’s actually fatter than ever,” Trump said, explaining that he told his friend, “‘The d**g is not working on you, you’re going to have to go to something else- but it does work on a lot of people.’”

Trump said the man responded, “Thanks, you make me feel good,” prompting the president to add, “Well, I gotta be truthful. Always tell the truth.”

Trump added that the d**g from the same company cost his friend way less than what it does in the United States.

D**g pricing at the center of remarks

Trump tied the anecdote to his administration’s push to reduce prescription d**g costs, reiterating a policy under which the US would match the lowest price paid by any other country.

“Whoever is paying the lowest, we match it,” he said.

The administration announced in November 2025 that Ozempic prices would drop to $350 per month through TrumpRx, down from current prices that can exceed $1,000.

Trump said people enrolled in Medicare and Medicaid would pay $245 per month starting in mid-2026.

Oral versions of the d**g, which are still in development, would be priced lower at $149 per month, according to the plan.

“For years, politicians have talked about making health care affordable,” Trump said at the time. “But my administration is actually doing it.”