Novo Nordisk defends Ozempic’s price in face of Senate scrutiny

Novo Nordisk defended the prices of its blockbuster diabetes and obesity drugs Ozempic and Wegovy amid a Senate probe into what the company charges.

Speaking on an earnings call Thursday, CEO Lars Fruergaard Jørgensen said the company launched the treatments at similar prices to earlier generations in the drug class, despite their having greater efficacy, making them “an attractive value proposition.”

He added that while the large number of people taking the treatments “is to some degree putting strains on health care systems,” the full value of Ozempic and Wegovy has not yet been realized, since the drugs over time are treating and preventing chronic conditions that are currently burdening health systems.

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