The medicine card
Know the medicine and its purpose.
Mounjaro and Zepbound contain the medicine tirzepatide. It can reduce hunger and lower blood sugar.
Check the medicine and its use
Hormones are messages made by the body. Tirzepatide copies two hormones from the gut, meaning the stomach and intestines. These messages help control hunger and how the body handles sugar after food.
As of September 26, 2026, the Mounjaro and Zepbound labels describe injections given weekly.
A medicine pen is an injection device. A single-dose pen holds one shot; a KwikPen holds medicine for several shots. A vial holds medicine in a small bottle. Ask which container is being proposed.
- Ask whoever is treating you to describe the goal for your care.
- Ask for the drug name, brand name and form in writing.
- Ask how the proposed product fits that goal.
What the brands are approved for
As recorded on September 26, 2026, FDA has approved Mounjaro to treat type 2 diabetes. High blood sugar is part of this condition.
Its label also permits use in adults who have diabetes and are at high risk of heart attack, stroke or heart-related death, to reduce those risks.
Weight loss is not an approved use for Mounjaro as recorded on September 26, 2026.
The Zepbound approval recorded on September 26, 2026, covers long-term weight care, with changes in food intake and activity. It is for adults who have obesity, or who are overweight and have a related health condition.
For adults who have obesity, Zepbound is also approved to treat moderate to severe obstructive sleep apnea. This condition involves repeated pauses in breathing during sleep.
- Which health condition is the proposed treatment meant to address?
- Which brand and form is on the prescription being discussed?
- How does that choice affect the coverage request?
A generic claim needs a closer look
A generic medicine copies a brand-name product and has FDA approval of its own.
FDA's records contained no approved tirzepatide generic as of September 26, 2026.
- If an offer uses the word generic, ask what product it means.
- If it means pharmacy-made, use the card on pharmacy-made medicine next.
- Check who makes the product, rather than judging it by the container.
Sources for this chapter
Use these sources to check the answers above. Bring any questions to the person treating you.