Danish drugmaker Novo Nordisk is launching its once-daily Wegovy pill in the United States on Monday, offering 1.5 milligram (mg) and 4 mg doses at $149 per month for self-paying patients in an intensely competitive weight-loss drug market.
The pill was approved by the US Food and Drug Administration last month, a boon to Novo Nordisk as it looks to regain ground lost to US rival Eli Lilly. Lilly awaits US approval for its weight-loss pill, possibly by March.
The Wegovy pill could attract new consumers as Novo looks to revive its fortunes after profit warnings and a slide in shares last year. The pill offers more flexibility and an alternative for those who dislike needles used in injectable medication.
Shares of the Danish drugmaker rose over 2% in late morning trading. Lilly shares fell about 1% in US premarket trading.
Luring cash customers key to pill's success
A key to the pill's success will be attracting cash-paying consumers who cannot obtain insurance coverage, a stark shift from the dominant business model in which drug pricing is managed through health insurance plans.
The low 1.5 mg dose is the starter dose for the Wegovy pill, which contains semaglutide, the same active ingredient found in its blockbuster injectable weight-loss and diabetes treatments, marketed under the brand names Wegovy and Ozempic.
Novo also offers the 1.5 mg starter dose for its oral semaglutide drug for type 2 diabetes, sold as Rybelsus.
Novo's pill will also be sold in 9 mg and a higher long-term dose of 25 mg. The drugmaker's website indicated that the two higher doses will be priced at $299 per month's supply, while the 4 mg dose will increase to $199 from April 15.
Lilly plans to cap higher doses of its obesity pill, if approved, at $399 a month for repeat cash buyers. Lilly's injectable drug Zepbound has largely been ahead of Novo's Wegovy in weekly US prescriptions over the past year.
Trump looks to lower obesity drug prices
US list prices for injectables are typically $1,000 or more per month. Both companies have reduced prices for their injectables for cash-paying customers rather than those with health insurance.
Novo began selling its Wegovy injection at $349 a month to cash payers in November.
Under a deal with US President Donald Trump, Novo and Lilly also agreed to offer starter doses of their weight-loss pills at $149 per month to Medicare and Medicaid enrollees and to cash payers via the White House's new direct-to-consumer TrumpRx site, which is expected to launch this month.
Novo's injectable drugs, which belong to a class of treatments known as GLP-1s, have seen unprecedented demand in recent years, which led to supply constraints in 2024.
Ahead of the pill launch, Novo said it was manufacturing the pill in North Carolina and had been building supplies for some time.