Novo Nordisk’s drug Saxenda is the newest to hit a scarcity, as excessive demand for weight reduction medicine sparks provide snags throughout the business.
Saxenda may have restricted availability by the top of the yr, in keeping with a discover posted Tuesday on a US Meals and Drug Administration database.
On a consumer-facing web site for the drug, the corporate mentioned it’s nonetheless making and transport Saxenda however warned of points filling prescriptions “for the rest of 2023 and past.”
“We proceed to see demand for Saxenda enhance at a considerable fee, leading to provide interruptions,“ a Novo spokesperson mentioned in an e-mail.
Newer medicine from Novo Nordisk like Wegovy and Ozempic, in addition to Eli Lilly & Co.’s diabetes drug Mounjaro, have change into massively well-liked in latest months after research confirmed they might assist sufferers lose dozens of kilos. Solely Wegovy is permitted by the FDA to deal with weight problems.
Whereas Saxenda works equally to those new medicine, it’s much less efficient and helps sufferers lose much less weight. Current shortages of Wegovy and Mounjaro, nevertheless, have led to renewed curiosity. Prescriptions for Saxenda jumped practically 30,000 between Could 2023 and June 2023, in keeping with Bloomberg Intelligence knowledge, the most important month-to-month soar over the previous two years.
On a Novo web site for Wegovy, the corporate warns potential sufferers in opposition to switching to Saxenda, saying “we can’t assure provide to match the continual rising demand for weight administration medicines.”
