America Poised for Ozempic Boom as Telehealth Giant Makes Drug Accessible for the First Time

• EXPLORE FURTHER: Every discreet indication that your colleagues might be silently taking Ozempic

The weight loss drug market will see an even bigger surge following the news that Wegovy will be accessible through telehealth services at lower prices.

The Danish pharmaceutical company Novo Nordisk has disclosed its collaboration with online platforms Hims & Hers, Ro, and LifeMD for selling Wegovy. This move aims to combat counterfeit versions of their widely-used weight-loss medication and increase accessibility for self-pay customers.

Hims & Hers announced they will start providing all doses of Wegovy this week, priced at $599 monthly for eligible cash-paying patients who have received a prescription.

Ro and LifeMD stated they will provide access to all doses of the medication, which is an enhanced form of Ozempic, for $499 each month.

These offers will be accessible to patients without insurance coverage or those with eligible commercial insurance who do not. coverage for obesity medicines.

At present, Wegovy retails at approximately $1,350 for a 28-day dosage.

This indicates that the drug might have an annual price tag exceeding $16,000 before factoring in insurance coverage or manufacturer rebates.

GLP-1 medications necessitate a prescription; however, individuals can use telehealth platforms to schedule an online consultation with a physician, quickly connect through video chat, and obtain a signed prescription.

Competitor pharmaceutical company Eli Lilly has taken comparable steps to enhance accessibility of its weight-loss medication, Zepbound, for self-pay customers. This includes partnering with Ro to provide the treatment via their platform.

Hims & Hers stock surged over 25 percent during midday trading following the news about the Wegovy launch, whereas LifeMD’s share price increased by more than 36 percent.

Last week, a U.S. judge dismissed an attempt by compound pharmacies to continue selling replicas of Wegovy during the ongoing legal dispute concerning medication shortages.

Compounders have been permitted to manufacture hundreds of thousands of doses of their interpretations of Novo's weight-loss and diabetic medications even as the FDA stated these drugs were scarce.

Large-scale outsourcing facilities, which produce compounded medications in significant quantities for sale to telehealth firms and other entities, have been granted until May 22 to halt production of the medication. In contrast, smaller compounding pharmacies are required to discontinue their operations immediately.

Last year, Hims & Hers and Ro began offering compounded forms of semaglutide, which is the key component in both Wegovy and Novo’s diabetes medication, Ozempic.

Andrew Dudum, the CEO of Hims, stated that the company plans to keep providing customized compounded forms of semaglutide through their platform.

To make Wegovy more readily available to patients paying out-of-pocket earlier this year, Novo Nordisk introduced their NovoCare pharmacy initiative to provide the medication for $499 at a discounted rate.

In late March, the company expanded the offer to include all qualifying cash-paying customers at their neighborhood pharmacies.

Patients can currently reach NovoCare directly via the three telehealth services available.

This should clearly convey that we have an ample stock of Wegovy... our aim is for everybody to understand that all doses are accessible," stated Dave Moore, who serves as the executive vice president of U.S. operations for the Danish pharmaceutical company.

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