President Trump announces price cuts for GLP-1 drugs Zepbound, Wegovy
President Donald Trump announced discounted pricing for Zepbound and Wegovy and expanded Medicare coverage to give more people access to the drugs.
Wigoby and Ozempic, makers of blockbuster weight loss and diabetes drugs, on Monday reduced the prices of most versions of those drugs.
Novo Nordisk has reduced the price of its injectables Wigovy and Ozempic from $499 to $349 per month for consumers who purchase the drug directly from a pharmaceutical company, telemedicine partner or retail pharmacy. Only the 2 mg dose of Ozempic remains $499 per month.
For new customers, Novo Nordisk will sell 0.25 mg and 0.5 mg versions of Wegovy and Ozempic for $199 for the first two months. Introductory offer for new self-pay consumers available through March 31, 2026.
Novo Nordisk’s price cuts come as the Trump administration pressures Novo Nordisk and rival Eli Lilly to lower prices on popular weight-loss and diabetes drugs. In the agreement announced Nov. 6, President Donald Trump said Medicare would cover Novo’s Wegoby and Lilly’s Zepbound for millions of seniors and that the drug companies would sell discounted versions of those drugs through TrumpRx, the federal government’s direct-to-consumer website scheduled to launch in 2026.
Novo Nordisk also continues to face competition from pharmacies that sell copies of Wigovy and semaglutide, the active ingredient in Ozempic, at discounted prices.
Consumers have struggled to purchase glucagon-like peptide-1 drugs (GLP-1) due to high list prices and limited insurance coverage. Wegovy retails for a list price of $1,349.
Mercer, a benefits consultant, said 44% of all large employers will have GLP-1 drug coverage for obesity in 2024, up from 41% in 2023. Insurance companies are more likely to cover GLP-1 drugs prescribed for other conditions such as diabetes, heart disease, and sleep apnea.
About 1 in 8 U.S. adults are taking GLP-1 drugs such as Wegovy and Ozempic, according to a tracking study released Nov. 14 by the health policy nonprofit KFF. According to the survey, about one in four users had to pay the full cost of their medication. More than half of GLP-1 users said they could not afford the drug.
Novo Nordisk officials said today’s price cuts are the latest in a series of moves by the Danish drugmaker to make medicines more affordable for U.S. consumers.
“Since we launched Ozempic and Wigobee, we’ve seen a downward trend in prices over time,” said David Moore, Novo Nordisk’s executive vice president of U.S. operations. “This is a phenomenon we have experienced, and it would not be surprising if this phenomenon continues as access and volume increases.”
Novo Nordisk expanded access by selling medicines through chain retail stores and discount websites.
In October, Novo Nordisk announced that Costco and Sam’s Club would sell Wigobee and Ozempic to self-pay customers. The Danish pharmaceutical company also sells medicines through the prescription drug discount website GoodRx. Consumers can also purchase Wegovy prescribed through the company’s NovoCare Pharmacy.
Novo and Lilly both develop weight-loss drugs that can be taken orally or injected as tablets. President Trump announced earlier this month that drug companies would sell unreleased oral versions of these weight loss drugs for $149 a month.
Moore said the company plans to receive Food and Drug Administration approval for Wigovy tablets by the end of 2025 and make the drug available to consumers by early 2026. Lilly is seeking FDA priority review for an oral drug called orforglipron.
Novo is hoping for FDA priority review for its high-dose, injectable version of Wegovy.
