WASHINGTON, Sept. 20 – As millions of Americans struggle with diabetes and obesity, Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), Chairman of the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP), on Tuesday will lead the committee in a hearing to examine why Novo Nordisk charges the American people the highest prices in the world for its lifesaving drugs, Ozempic and Wegovy. Epidemiologists have estimated that more than 40,000 lives per year could be saved if Wegovy and other weight-loss drugs were made affordable and widely available in the United States.
Novo Nordisk CEO Lars Fruergaard Jørgensen will join the hearing to provide in-person testimony on a solo panel.
“I want to thank Mr. Jørgensen for our discussions and for his agreeing to voluntarily testify before the HELP Committee about the outrageously high cost of Ozempic and Wegovy in the United States,” said Sanders. “The American people are sick and tired of paying, by far, the highest prices in the world for prescription drugs. They deserve to hear from Mr. Jørgensen.”
Novo Nordisk has made nearly $50 billion in sales from these two products alone. Yet, Novo Nordisk currently charges Americans with Type 2 diabetes $969 a month for Ozempic, while this same exact drug can be purchased for just $155 in Canada, $122 in Denmark, and just $59 in Germany. Incredibly, Novo Nordisk also charges Americans with obesity $1,349 a month for Wegovy, while this same exact product can be purchased for just $186 in Denmark, $140 in Germany, and $92 in the United Kingdom.
In March of 2024, a study from researchers at Yale University found these drugs could be profitably manufactured for less than $5 a month, or $57 per year. Earlier this week at an expert discussion hosted by Sanders, the chairman announced that some CEOs of major generic pharmaceutical companies are willing to sell Ozempic to Americans for less than $100 per month, at a profit. More than 250 physicians also came together earlier this week to call on Congress to rein in the exorbitant prices of GLP-1s, like Ozempic and Wegovy.
If half of all adults in the U.S. took these weight loss drugs, it would cost $411 billion per year – $5 billion more than what Americans spent on all prescription drugs at the pharmacy counter in 2022.
This hearing builds on the HELP Committee’s previous efforts to ensure pharmaceutical companies provide life-saving medicines at affordable prices, including taxpayer funded prescription drugs, COVID vaccines, inhalers, and insulin.
Details
What: Senate HELP Committee hearing titled, “Why Is Novo Nordisk Charging Americans with Diabetes and Obesity Outrageously High Prices for Ozempic and Wegovy?”
When: 10:00 a.m. ET, Tuesday, September 24, 2024
Where: Room 562 Dirksen Senate Office Building. The discussion will also be livestreamed on the HELP Committee’s website and Sanders’ social media.
Who:
- Senate HELP Committee members
- Novo Nordisk CEO Lars Fruergaard Jørgensen
