Questions are being raised about pharmaceutical companies after the producer of Ozempic announced a significant price reduction for certain Americans. Novo Nordisk is now offering this GLP-1 drug at $499 a month, a reduction from the previous price of $997.58, but this applies only to those without insurance.
For those unfamiliar, Ozempic is administered as a weekly injection that assists in lowering blood sugar levels by enhancing the pancreas’s insulin production. It gained approval in the United States in 2017 for adults managing type 2 diabetes.
It’s worth noting that while Ozempic hasn’t been approved for weight loss in the US, Wegovy, another GLP-1 drug from Novo Nordisk, has received approval and contains a higher dose of semaglutide.
The announcement of the price reduction by $498.59 has sparked outrage on Twitter, with many questioning the ethics of the initial nearly $1,000 price tag.
“It’s wild how pricing works in healthcare. same drug, different price depending on how you pay,” commented one frustrated individual.
Another remarked: “Half the price… I bet they are still going to make money hand over fist.”
A third user expressed skepticism: “Wow 500 bucks! What a bargain! Everybody can afford that! WTF?”
A fourth added: “When pharmaceutical companies can just cut their price by HALF, makes you wonder how they were charging twice as much in the first place.”
While uninsured individuals will now pay $499 per month, this is still a considerable decrease from the previous price.
For Americans with commercial or private insurance, the cost could be as low as $25, depending on their insurance coverage.
The $499 price for those without insurance is available across more than 70,000 pharmacies nationwide, following Novo Nordisk’s partnership with GoodRx, the leading medication savings platform in the US.
“As a leader in the GLP-1 category, Novo Nordisk is taking a progressive approach to drive access and meet patients where they are,” Novo Nordisk stated. “In accordance with this focus, beginning August 18, Novo Nordisk will support self-paying patients in the US with the costs of their medication, launching a self-pay offer for all doses of Ozempic, enabling patients without adequate insurance coverage to obtain this prescription-only medicine for $499 per month.”