The stocks of companies that make the new class of drugs to treat obesity and manage diabetes were higher across the board early Tuesday, after the Biden administration proposed a rule that would allow Medicare or Medicaid to cover the expensive medications.

The Biden administration proposed a rule for Medicare and Medicaid to cover the costs of weight-loss drugs for millions of Americans with obesity.

The pharmaceutical manufacturer Amgen announced on Tuesday that an experimental obesity drug helped patients lose up to 20 percent of their weight in a year. The drug, MariTide, is given by injection once a month, compared with once a week for other obesity drugs like Wegovy and Zepbound that are already on the market.

This may be the first Thanksgiving for millions of Americans who are on GLP-1 agonists like Ozempic, Zepbound or Wegovy.

The proposal would expand coverage of anti-obesity drugs to 7.5 million people covered by Medicare and Medicaid, the Biden administration said.

Millions of Americans would be eligible to have costly weight-loss drugs like Wegovy or Ozempic covered by Medicare or Medicaid under the rule.

Amgen's experimental drug MariTide led to an average weight loss of up to 20% in a year-long mid-stage trial of nearly 600 people who were overweight or obese, the company said on Tuesday.

The potential health benefits of GLP-1 diabetes and weight loss meds keep piling up: New research shows they may also shield your kidneys from harm. In the largest study to date on the effects of the drugs on the kidneys, researchers found GLP-1s help the protect the organs in people with or without diabetes.

The Biden administration wants to expand coverage of anti-obesity medications to millions on Medicare, Medicaid.