Copenhagen (AFP) – Danish drugmaker Novo Nordisk, which is struggling with competition for its anti-obesity treatments, said Tuesday that it will sharply cut prices for its flagship drugs in the US, announcing a 50 percent cut for Wegovy and 35 percent for Ozempic.
“This decision applies to all doses of these medicines and reflects Novo Nordisk’s commitment to enhancing affordability for patients and both public and private payers dealing with the complexities of the evolving US healthcare system,” the company said in a statement. Effective January 1, 2027, the list price will be $675 for a month’s worth of Wegovy, which currently costs around $1,350 a month. Ozempic and Rybelsus, treatments that each currently come to about $1,000, will also be priced $675.
Novo Nordisk said the price reduction is meant to make it possible to reach more patients. “Lowering the list price of Wegovy and Ozempic is the best approach to address the unprecedented opportunity to help more than 100 million people living with obesity and over 35 million people with type 2 diabetes in the United States,” Jamey Millar, executive vice president of Novo Nordisk’s US Operations, said.
In early February, Novo Nordisk vowed legal action against US chain Hims & Hers for offering a copycat of the new pill version of Wegovy. Limited production capacity for the blockbuster drug led the FDA to temporarily allow pharmacies to create so-called “compound” or copycat versions of Wegovy and Ozempic, an analogue used to treat diabetes. That authorisation expired last May 22, but Novo Nordisk has complained of copycat versions of its drugs still being available.
Ozempic is an injectable anti-diabetic treatment that became popular on social media for its slimming properties. Wegovy, which has the same active ingredient as Ozempic in a different dose, is a weight-loss drug and is also available in pill form. Both treatments use analogues of the hormone GLP-1, which regulates blood glucose levels and appetite.
Shares in Novo Nordisk have taken a beating in recent weeks after it warned in early February of lower sales revenue in the United States as intensified competition pushes down prices. They fell 3.8 percent in afternoon trading in Copenhagen.
© 2024 AFP
