Price war in weight-loss drugs heats up as Novo Nordisk reduces Wegovy prices
Novo Nordisk local executives said it is cutting South African prices for its weight-loss drug Wegovy for a second time since its launch in August, pointing to fierce competition in a market led by rival Eli Lilly.
Boxes of Wegovy made by Novo Nordisk are seen at a pharmacy in London, Britain. Image credit: Reuters/Hollie Adams
The Danish drugmaker launched Wegovy in South Africa in August, when reference pricing was uncertain due to talks with the US administration on its proposed "most-favoured nation" policy linking US drug prices to those in peer countries.
Not conducive prices
"We were of the view that the prices at the time were not conducive for the South African market," Thabeng Leping, who oversees market access and public affairs for Novo Nordisk South Africa, told Reuters on the sidelines of an event about obesity.
"Because we couldn't delay the launch, we just decided we'll fix it as we go along," he said. "So we reduced our prices in December. We've submitted another reduction of our prices yesterday."
The lowest injected dose of Wegovy has dropped from R3,090 to R1,873, while the highest dose has fallen 27% to R3,746. A further 12% cut to the 1.7 mg dose — the second highest — is awaiting approval, Leping said.
Eli Lilly's rival Mounjaro starts at about R3,600. Its share of the South African market grew to 52% at the end of January, Aspen Pharmacare, the official seller of Mounjaro, said this month, predicting more than R1.3bn in sales in the year through June.
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Copycats
Novo declined to give local sales figures, saying only that its products were doing "extremely well".
Speaking on a panel at the event, Novo South Africa general manager Sara Norcross said the company intends to introduce its Wegovy pill locally "as soon as possible".
Both Novo and Lilly face competition from unauthorised copycat versions of their drugs, which Norcross said were used by one in two people on weight-loss treatments in South Africa despite adverse outcomes.
Novo has pursued legal action against a local compounder, while the health regulator is moving to classify such products as "undesirable."