Topline
Ozempic maker Novo Nordisk confirmed Tuesday that its popular weight-loss drug Wegovy had been approved for sale in China, a major win for the Danish company that opens the door to a huge market, but the company told Forbes it will only launch there once it can guarantee supplies for those already using them as shortages plague the U.S. market and elsewhere.
Wegovy was approved in China for obesity, Novo Nordisk said.
Key facts
Novo said its blockbuster injectable Wegovy had been approved for “long-term weight management” in obese and overweight people in China who have at least one weight-related health problem.
The company has not said when it plans to launch in China, indicated potential prices or provided details on the size of supplies it would dedicate to the world’s second-largest country.
Novo’s Global Media Relations Lead Camilla Louise Lyngsby declined to comment on Wegovy’s potential shipment volume or a launch date in China.
However, Lyngsby said Novo would make an announcement about the supply in China “when we can ensure continuity of care,” meaning it can guarantee access to the drug for people who have already started and are using it.
In light of tremendous demand and plans to roll out in more areas, the supply of smaller Wegovy doses used by people starting treatment in the US has been severely limited for months and at the time of writing three lowest of the five Wegovy doses listed as ‘restricted’. availability” on the Food and Drug Administration website due to “increased demand.”
Given the focus on ensuring access to higher doses for those already taking the drugs, it is unclear whether Wegovy’s rollout in China will prolong or even worsen shortages of the lower starting doses in the US and elsewhere.
News Peg
Shares of Novo Nordisk rose 1.6% in Copenhagen on Tuesday after the announcement. The runaway success of Novo’s GLP-1 treatments Wegovy and Ozempic has propelled the company to a market capitalization of about $630 billion, up from about $300 billion at the start of 2023.
Tangent
Novo said Monday it will invest $4.1 billion to develop a new U.S. manufacturing facility in Clayton, North Carolina. The plant, which will join three other facilities in the area, will fill medications such as Ozempic and Wegovy into injection pens. Novo said the facility is expected to be completed between 2027 and 2029 and create approximately 1,000 new jobs. This figure represents a significant portion of the $6.8 billion the Danish company says it plans to spend on manufacturing this year as it races to ramp up production of its incredibly popular GLP-1 drug semaglutide, sold such as Ozempic for diabetes and Wegovy for obesity and cardiovascular disease. issues. Like GLP-1 rival Eli Lilly, which produces tirzepatide – sold as Mounjaro for diabetes and Zepbound for weight loss – Novo is struggling to meet growing demand for the revolutionary drugs, which are also starting to show promise in a number of other areas , including sleep apnea, heart problems, kidney disease and Parkinson’s. Supplies have been limited or unavailable for months or years, especially the smaller starting doses for those starting treatment, and the company acknowledges that this is unlikely to be resolved in the near future, although promised care will continue for those who use the medications. Shortages have led to warnings about the increasing number of counterfeit medications or unauthorized formulas that could be dangerous. Together, the duo dominate the industry and appear likely to do so for the foreseeable future, despite a rush of competitors rushing to bring drugs to market and facing increasing pressure to ramp up production.
Main critics
Companies like Novo have also come under heavy criticism in the US from politicians like Bernie Sanders for the high prices of their products compared to other countries.
Can Novo Nordisk keep up with the rising demand for Wegovy?
“Novo Nordisk is increasing capacity at a breakneck pace,” but “the biggest bottleneck for semaglutide right now is supply,” Rajesh Kumar, head of HSBC’s European Life Sciences and Healthcare Equity Research, told Forbes. While Novo has managed Wegovy’s supply in the past by limiting the supply of initial doses, Kumar said he thinks the Danish company will “likely manage the increase in supply” in the future despite the increase in demand. “The company has maintained that they guarantee supply of diabetes indication and the obesity increase has slowed down as a result,” Kumar said. “I imagine the priority probably won’t change.”
What to pay attention to
A patent cliff is looming for Novo in China, much sooner than in many other regions, and generic versions of semaglutide are expected to hit the market around 2026.
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