Danish pharmaceutical company Novo Nordisk has commented on Hims & Hers Health's recent move to offer a copy of Novo Nordisk's new Wegovy pill at an introductory price of $49 per month, about $100 less than the original.
"Hims & Hers' actions constitute illegal mass production that poses a significant risk to patient safety. Novo Nordisk will take legal and regulatory action to protect patients, our intellectual property, and the integrity of the U.S. drug approval system, which is a gold standard. This is yet another example of Hims & Hers' history of deceiving the American public with copies of GLP-1 products, and the FDA has previously warned them about their misleading advertising for GLP-1 copies," the company stated.
Novo Nordisk notes that the American Diabetes Association's Obesity Association has published new care standards advising against the use of compounded GLP-1 drugs, citing risks related to safety, quality, and efficacy.
The company emphasizes that Wegovy in tablet form, based on SNAC technology for oral absorption of semaglutide, is the only FDA-approved solution of its kind and is fully available in the United States. According to Novo Nordisk, compounded semaglutide lacks regulatory approval and may contain impurities or untested dosages.
The announcement that Hims & Hers had started offering the cheaper copy caused Novo Nordisk, as well as competitor Eli Lilly, to fall on the stock market. Novo Nordisk is down 8.2 percent in Copenhagen, while Eli Lilly is down 7.6 percent in New York.
Novo Nordisk A/S specializes in the design, manufacture and marketing of pharmaceutical products. Net sales break down by family of products as follows:
- diabetes and obesity treatment products (93.7%);
- rare disease treatment products (6.3%): intended for the treatment of haemophilia, blood disorders, hormonal disorders, etc.
Net sales are distributed geographically as follows: Europe and Canada (21.4%), the United States (56%), Latin America/Middle East/Africa (9.9%), China/Hong Kong/Taiwan (6%), Asia/Pacific (6.7%).
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