As weight loss injections continue to grow in popularity, the maker of two of the most popular is testifying on Capitol Hill Tuesday, Sept. 24. The CEO of Novo Nordisk, which makes Ozempic and Wegovy, will testify before a Senate committee about the high cost of these popular drugs.
Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt, the head of the Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions, has been vocal about frustrations over how much Americans are charged for their medications.
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While they’re pretty much the same thing, Ozempic is used to treat type 2 diabetes, while Wegovy is specifically approved for weight loss purposes only. A previous report by the committee showed the price of Wegovy is significantly lower in European countries — for example, it’s about $140 a month in Germany and only $92 in the U.K., while the same drug runs Americans more than $1,300 a month.
Ahead of the hearing, Novo Nordisk is defending its pricing structure in a statement saying, “We appreciate that it is frustrating that each country has its own healthcare system, but making isolated and limited comparisons ignores a fundamental fact…Unfortunately, even when we lower our prices, too often patients in the United States don’t receive the savings.”
The company also said Ozempic’s net price — which is how much money it makes after rebates and discounts are calculated — has gone down 40% since it was introduced in the U.S. Wegovy is “following a similar trajectory,” according to the company.
The Department of Health and Human Services said in a report published in February that in 2022, prices of all drugs in the U.S. were nearly three times as high as in other wealthy countries — despite whether they were name brand or generic.
Watch Tuesday’s hearing here.
