Wegovy maker Novo Nordisk sues spas over counterfeit drugs

[June 21, 2023]  By Nikolaj Skydsgaard and Blake Brittain

(Reuters) -Wegovy maker Novo Nordisk on Tuesday said it had sued some medical spas and wellness clinics in the United States for selling products claiming to contain semaglutide, the key ingredient in its popular weight-loss and diabetes drugs.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) last month warned in public guidance about the safety risks of unauthorized versions of Novo Nordisk's popular weight-loss drugs, which include Ozempic, Wegovy and Rybelsus, in response to reports of adverse health reactions to the "compounded" or custom-made variations.

Barclays estimates the global market of weight-loss therapies could be worth as much as $100 billion in the next 10 years, with most of the benefit accrued to early leaders, Novo and Eli Lilly.

The Danish drugmaker said it had filed federal court lawsuits in states including New York, Florida, Tennessee and Texas, accusing the spas of selling unapproved variations of its drugs.

"Novo Nordisk has commenced the filing of legal actions in the US against certain medical spas, weight loss or wellness clinics, and compounding pharmacies to cease and desist from false advertising, trademark infringement and/or unlawful sales of non-FDA approved compounded products claiming to contain semaglutide," it said in a statement.

Flags are seen outside Novo Nordisk headquarters in Copenhagen, Denmark, February 5, 2020. REUTERS/Jacob Gronholt-Pedersen

Novo Nordisk asked the courts for orders blocking the sales of the unauthorized drugs and an unspecified amount of money damages.

Four of the companies named in the lawsuits in Florida, Texas and Tennessee did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

(Reporting by Nikolaj Skydsgaard and Blake Brittain; Editing by Ed Osmond and Alexander Smith)

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