Eli Lilly has announced plans to lower the price of its obesity medication, Zepbound, and expand the available dosage options for online purchase.
The pharmaceutical company revealed it would reduce the price of Zepbound vials by more than $50 and offer more dosage options through its online platform, LillyDirect.
With competition intensifying in the lucrative weight loss drug market, Eli Lilly is looking to gain an edge over competitors such as Novo Nordisk and compounding pharmacies.
Compounding pharmacies had been selling Zepbound and Novo Nordisk’s Wegovy during a period of shortages for weight loss treatments. However, in December last year, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) removed Zepbound from its shortage list. More recently, Wegovy was also removed from the list. As a result, compounding pharmacies will no longer be able to sell these medications in the coming months.
The Outsourcing Facilities Association, a trade group representing compounding pharmacies, has filed a lawsuit against the FDA over its decision to remove Novo Nordisk’s Wegovy and the diabetes medication Ozempic from the shortage list.
Earlier, compounding pharmacies also filed a lawsuit challenging the FDA’s declaration that Eli Lilly’s tripeptides, including Zepbound, were no longer in short supply. These pharmacies argue that weight-loss treatments like Wegovy are still in short supply.
The FDA has instructed some pharmacies to halt the sale of tirzepatide pending a court ruling.
Telehealth companies have felt the impact of these developments heavily. Hims & Hers Health (HIMS.N) saw its stock drop by about 26% after announcing potential restrictions on sales of its combined obesity treatment. Similarly, telehealth companies LifeMD (LFMD.O) and Teladoc (TDOC.N) experienced stock declines of 11.4% and nearly 2%, respectively.
Amid this disruption, Eli Lilly’s price reduction for Zepbound may offer a more affordable option for consumers unable to access obesity treatments through traditional pharmacies.
Eli Lilly now offers Zepbound vials at a lower price on its direct sales website. Since August of last year, the company has been selling 7.5 mg and 10 mg Zepbound vials. With the recent price cut of about $50 per dosage, the new monthly supply costs are set at $349 and $499, respectively.
This price is nearly 23% lower than the $650 auto-injection for uninsured patients. However, even with the new cost of $499, Eli Lilly’s Zepbound still exceeds the average price of Zepbound and Wegovy in U.S. pharmacies, which ranges from $231 to $330.
