*(CNN) — Sen. Bernie Sanders is taking intention on the excessive costs of the blockbuster medication Ozempic and Wegovy. The Vermont senator, an impartial who has lengthy referred to as out drug producers for his or her pricey merchandise, is launching an investigation into the “outrageously excessive costs” Novo Nordisk expenses for the medication.
“The scientists at Novo Nordisk deserve nice credit score for creating these medication which have the potential to be a sport changer for hundreds of thousands of Individuals battling kind 2 diabetes and weight problems. As vital as these medication are, they won’t do any good for the hundreds of thousands of sufferers who can not afford them,” Sanders, chair of the Senate Committee on Well being, Schooling, Labor and Pensions, wrote Wednesday in a letter to the drugmaker’s CEO. “Additional, if the costs for these merchandise usually are not considerably decreased, in addition they have the potential to bankrupt Medicare, Medicaid, and our whole well being care system.”
Sanders is asking Novo Nordisk to reply whether or not it is going to “considerably cut back” the costs of the drugs in addition to to supply info on how a lot it makes from promoting the medication, how a lot it spent on analysis and growth and the way it decided the costs.
Ozempic is authorized by the US Meals and Drug Administration to deal with diabetes and Wegovy to assist sure individuals shed pounds or decrease their danger of heart problems. Each are injectable medication that use the energetic ingredient semaglutide, considered one of a category of medicines referred to as GLP-1 receptor agonists.
Novo Nordisk elevated the record worth for Ozempic by 3.5% this yr to $969 for a four-week provide however saved the worth of Wegovy unchanged at $1,349. The drugmaker informed CNN in February that it will increase the record costs of some drugs annually based mostly on adjustments within the healthcare system, inflation, and market situations.
Sanders’ letter notes that researchers at Yale College lately discovered that these drugs “may be profitably manufactured for lower than $5 a month.” Additionally, Ozempic prices solely $155 in Canada and $59 in Germany, whereas Wegovy may be bought for $140 in Germany and $92 in the UK, the senator identified.
Novo Nordisk agrees with Sanders that entry to the drugs is vital for sufferers, the corporate stated in an announcement. It stated it stays dedicated to working with policymakers on methods to assist entry and affordability.
“It’s straightforward to oversimplify the science that goes into understanding illness and creating and producing new remedies, in addition to the intricacies of U.S. and international healthcare methods,” Novo Nordisk stated. “Nonetheless, the general public debate doesn’t all the time take into consideration this extraordinarily advanced actuality.”
For many Individuals, the worth they pay for drugs depends upon their medical insurance insurance policies, not drugmakers’ record costs. Nonetheless, they could need to pay the record worth if they’re uninsured or haven’t but hit their annual deductible. As well as, many drug producers, together with Novo Nordisk, provide financial savings playing cards and affected person help packages that may cut back sure individuals’s out-of-pocket prices.
Ozempic can also be proving pricey for the federal authorities, whereas Wegovy’s current approval to cut back the danger of coronary heart assaults and strokes is predicted so as to add to the tab.
Medicare is just not allowed by regulation to cowl medication for weight reduction however will cowl Ozempic for enrollees with diabetes and Wegovy for these with heart problems who’re chubby or overweight. It spent $4.6 billion on Ozempic in 2022, in contrast with $2.6 billion the yr earlier than, in keeping with KFF.
One other KFF evaluation discovered that Wegovy might value Medicare practically $3 billion a yr. Neither evaluation took under consideration rebates, info on which isn’t publicly obtainable.
The spike in spending on these medication will most likely contribute to increased Half D premiums for all beneficiaries.
CNN’s Meg Tirrell contributed to this report.
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