Ozempic, Wegovy move closer to no longer being in shortage, FDA says
After years of ongoing shortages due to their growing popularity, all doses of both Ozempic and Wegovy are now listed as "available" on the U.S. Food and Drug Administration's drug shortage list.
The change in status comes nearly six months after Novo Nordisk, the maker of the popular drugs used for weight loss, announced it would invest over $6 billion dollars to help meet the increased demand for the drugs amid both shortages and high prices.
Though all doses of the two medications are now listed as available, the FDA still considers the products to be in shortage.
When a shortage is completely over, the FDA lists it as "resolved" and takes the medications off the shortage list.
"It is important to note that even when a medication is available, patients may not always be able to immediately fill their prescription at a particular pharmacy," Novo Nordisk said in a statement to ABC News. "Patients may experience variability at a particular pharmacy location regardless of whether a drug is in shortage."
The statement continued, "As a leader and pioneer in the discovery of GLP-1 obesity treatments for decades, our commitment to this community is unwavering. People living with obesity can count on Novo Nordisk to partner, educate, and advocate to change how this disease is understood, diagnosed, and treated."
Earlier this month, the FDA took two other medications used for weight loss, Mounjaro and Zepbound, off its shortage list. Those medications are made by Eli Lilly.
Both Ozempic and Mounjaro are approved by the FDA to treat Type 2 diabetes, but some doctors prescribe the medication "off-label" for weight loss, as is permissible by the FDA.
Wegovy, a medication that contains semaglutide, the same main ingredient as Ozempic, and Zepbound, a medication that contains tirzepatide, the same main ingredient as Mounjaro, are both FDA-approved for weight loss.
The drugs, typically taken once weekly as injections, work by helping the pancreas increase the production of insulin to move sugar from the blood into body tissues.
They also slow down the movement of food through the stomach and curb appetite, thereby causing weight loss.
Past clinical studies have shown users of the medications can lose between 5% and 20% of their body weight on the medications over time.
