Novo Nordisk offers discounts on Wegovy as ban on copycats takes effect

(Reuters) -Novo Nordisk said on Thursday it would offer temporary discounts to cash-paying customers for its weight-loss drug Wegovy, in a move that coincides with a deadline for halting sales of cheaper compounded version.

The Danish drugmaker said it would offer the drug at a one-time price of $199 for the first month to cash-paying patients until June 30, after which it will cost $499 per month.

The list price for Wegovy is more than $1,000 a month for people who do not have health insurance coverage, but Novo has begun selling the treatment directly to U.S. consumers at a cash price of $499 a month.

The latest announcement is another step by the company to further lower the cost of the medication as it looks to limit sales of cheaper compounded drugs and expand access.

Compounding pharmacies had been allowed to produce hundreds of thousands of doses of their versions of Novo's obesity and diabetes drugs while the U.S. health regulator said the medicines were in short supply.

Larger so-called outsourcing facilities, which make compounded drugs in bulk, had been given until May 22 to cease making the drug.

Two telehealth firms, Ro and LifeMD, also said they would temporarily offer Wegovy at $199 for the first month on their platforms along with a membership fee.

A day earlier, Cigna said it would cap out-of-pocket costs at $200 per month for patients using the weight-loss drugs Wegovy and Zepbound through an add-on to its pharmacy benefit management plans.

Novo's rival Eli Lilly has also begun offering its popular weight-loss drug Zepbound at discounted prices.

The high price tag of the weight-loss drugs has come under scrutiny, with the Trump administration singling them out as targets in its push to lower prescription drug prices.

(Reporting by Sriparna Roy in Bengaluru; Editing by Shilpi Majumdar and Savio D'Souza)