GLP-1 Treatment in Colorado: What It Costs and Who Covers It

A Colorado overview of physician-supervised GLP-1 treatment through Astra, including local access context and the cities we cover. Every statistic on this page links to its source.

25.0% of Colorado adults have obesity (CDC BRFSS, 2024) 1 — the lowest adult obesity rate of any U.S. state that year, and the only state under 26%, confirmed by querying all 50 states plus DC in the same dataset (DC came in at 25.5%, higher than Colorado) 1. The national rate was 33.1% 1.

Roughly 1,161,711 Colorado adults still sit in that group. That figure is modelled — population × a 0.78 national adult-share assumption × the prevalence rate, a pack-wide convention, not an independently published Census or CDC number 12.

Adult obesity rate (2024)
25%1
National adult obesity rate
33.1%
Adults with obesity (modelled)
1,161,711
State population
5,957,4932
Uninsured rate
7.9%3
Median household income
$97,1133
Medicaid coverage for weight loss
Not for weight loss alone. Health First Colorado (Colorado Medicaid) lists weight-loss drugs among the medications it does not cover, and its Preferred Drug List (effective July 1, 2026) states: “Prior Authorization for GLP-1 analogues prescribed solely for weight loss will not be approved.” Wegovy and Zepbound can be approved only for narrower, non-weight-loss reasons: Wegovy for members with established cardiovascular disease, Zepbound for moderate-to-severe obstructive sleep apnea. GLP-1 coverage for type 2 diabetes is separate.567

Does Colorado Medicaid cover GLP-1s for weight loss?

No — not for weight loss alone. Health First Colorado (Colorado Medicaid) lists weight-loss drugs among the medications its pharmacy benefit does not cover 5, and its Preferred Drug List, effective July 1, 2026, states: “Prior Authorization for GLP-1 analogues prescribed solely for weight loss will not be approved.” 7

Its prior-authorization manual (Appendix P, effective July 1, 2026) files weight-loss drugs under “Anorexiants” with the note “Medications prescribed for use for weight loss are not a covered benefit” 6. Wegovy and Zepbound can be approved only for reasons other than weight loss: Wegovy for members with established cardiovascular disease, and Zepbound for moderate-to-severe obstructive sleep apnea 7. GLP-1 coverage for type 2 diabetes is separate.

Criteria change several times a year. To confirm the current rules for your situation, check Health First Colorado’s pharmacy resources or ask your Medicaid health plan. Without coverage, the realistic options are paying cash at a local clinic or a telehealth program — Astra’s price is below.

What GLP-1 treatment costs in Colorado

Our price in Colorado is the same as our price everywhere else.

Astra's pricing is the same in every state we serve: compounded semaglutide from $68 per month and compounded tirzepatide from $118 per month on 12-month plans, or $145 and $250 per month when billed monthly. There is no local price list, no regional surcharge, and no state-specific discount.

Colorado's uninsured rate is 7.9% and median household income is $97,113 (Census Reporter / ACS 2024 1-year estimates) 3. There is no local price comparison on this page: no verified Colorado clinic pricing exists to compare against, and state hubs do not carry price tables.

Is telehealth prescribing legal in Colorado?

Prescriber licensing in Colorado runs through the Colorado Division of Professions and Occupations (DORA), which houses the Colorado Medical Board and the State Board of Pharmacy.

This page does not summarise a Colorado-specific telehealth-prescribing or compounding rule; the board above is the place to check one.

What is settled is federal, not state-specific: the FDA ended the tirzepatide shortage on December 19, 2024 and the semaglutide shortage on February 21, 2025, and a compounded copy of an FDA-approved GLP-1 is lawful only for an individual patient with a prescriber-documented, clinically significant difference from the approved product.

Getting treated in Colorado

Astra is licensed to treat patients in Colorado, and in all 50 states. No waitlist, no availability check.

Astra treats patients in Colorado through state-licensed physicians.

GLP-1 treatment options in Colorado

  • Compounded tirzepatide — a dual-action GIP/GLP-1 medication, compounded by licensed pharmacies.
  • Compounded semaglutide — a GLP-1 receptor agonist, compounded by licensed pharmacies.
  • GLP-1 microdosing — physician-guided low-dose compounded tirzepatide or semaglutide.
  • Wegovy — FDA-approved brand-name semaglutide, filled by a licensed pharmacy.
  • Zepbound — FDA-approved brand-name tirzepatide, filled by a licensed pharmacy.

Compounded medications are not FDA-approved and have not been reviewed by the FDA for safety, effectiveness, or quality. A licensed physician decides whether treatment is appropriate for you.

GLP-1 care by city in Colorado

Colorado Springs, Fort Collins and Greeley each have their own page below. CDC PLACES city-level figures for all three use a different methodology and survey year than the state number above, so they are not published here as comparable [4].

Frequently asked questions

Why does Colorado have the lowest obesity rate of any U.S. state?

Colorado's adult obesity rate was 25.0% in 2024 (CDC BRFSS) -- the lowest of any U.S. state, and the only one under 26%, against a 33.1% national rate. That's a real, sourced ranking, not an Astra claim about why; we haven't researched the causes and won't speculate. It also doesn't mean obesity is rare here -- CDC's own modelling puts more than a million Colorado adults in that group.

Does Health First Colorado (Colorado Medicaid) cover Wegovy or Zepbound for weight loss?

Not for weight loss alone. Health First Colorado’s Preferred Drug List (effective July 1, 2026) states that prior authorization for GLP-1 analogues prescribed solely for weight loss will not be approved, and its pharmacy-benefits page lists weight-loss drugs among the medications it does not cover. Wegovy can be approved for members with established cardiovascular disease and Zepbound for moderate-to-severe obstructive sleep apnea — not for weight loss on its own. Check hcpf.colorado.gov’s pharmacy resources or your health plan for the current criteria.

Is Astra cheaper in Colorado than in other states?

No -- Astra's price is the same nationwide: $68/month for semaglutide and $118/month for tirzepatide, both on 12-month plans, the same price at every dose. We're a telehealth provider, not a local clinic, so there's no Colorado markup and no Colorado discount. We say this plainly because most competitors' state pages imply otherwise.

Do I need to see a doctor in person to get GLP-1 treatment in Colorado?

This page does not summarise Colorado's specific telehealth-prescribing statute or board rule. In general, states in this pack allow licensed providers to evaluate patients and prescribe non-controlled medications like semaglutide and tirzepatide through telehealth without a mandatory in-person visit, provided the visit meets the same standard of care as an in-person exam -- but Colorado's exact rule needs its own citation before this page asserts that specifically.

Can I get compounded semaglutide or tirzepatide in Colorado?

Possibly, but only under narrow federal conditions (Colorado-specific board rules are not summarised here). Since the FDA declared the tirzepatide and semaglutide shortages resolved (Dec 19, 2024 and Feb 21, 2025), a compounding pharmacy may generally dispense a compounded version of an FDA-approved GLP-1 only for an individual patient whose prescriber has determined and documented a clinically significant difference from the approved product (FDA Section 503A). Whether that applies to you is a decision for a licensed provider.

Sources

  1. CDC BRFSS -- Nutrition, Physical Activity, and Obesity dataset (data.cdc.gov, hn4x-zwk7), Colorado + national 2024 values — https://data.cdc.gov/resource/hn4x-zwk7.json
  2. U.S. Census Bureau, Population Estimates Program, Vintage 2024 State Totals (NST-EST2024-ALLDATA) — https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/popest/datasets/2020-2024/state/totals/NST-EST2024-ALLDATA.csv
  3. Census Reporter / ACS 2024 1-year -- Colorado profile (median household income B19013, health insurance coverage B27001) — https://censusreporter.org/profiles/04000US08-colorado/
  4. CDC PLACES 2025 release (eav7-hnsx) -- city-level context for Colorado Springs, Fort Collins, Greeley (supplementary; different methodology and survey year than the state figure above -- not directly comparable) — https://data.cdc.gov/resource/eav7-hnsx.json
  5. Health First Colorado (HCPF) — Pharmacy benefits: medications not covered for any reason include weight-loss drugs — https://hcpf.colorado.gov/pharmacy-benefits
  6. Colorado HCPF Appendix P, Prior Authorization Criteria, effective 07/01/2026 (Anorexiants: weight-loss medications not a covered benefit) — https://hcpf.colorado.gov/sites/hcpf/files/Appendix%20P%2007.01.26%20V2.pdf
  7. Colorado HCPF Preferred Drug List, effective 07/01/2026 — GLP-1 analogues prescribed solely for weight loss: prior authorization will not be approved — https://hcpf.colorado.gov/sites/hcpf/files/07-01-26_PDL_V1.pdf

Last reviewed:

Educational information, not medical advice. Treatment requires evaluation by a licensed physician.