Novo Nordisk finds compounded Wegovy up to 33% impure, sues Florida
pharmacies
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[November 30, 2023]
By Patrick Wingrove
(Reuters) - Novo Nordisk on Thursday said it sued one compounding
pharmacy and refiled a lawsuit against another after finding their
products claiming to contain the active ingredient for its in-demand
weight-loss drug Wegovy were impure, some by as much as 33%.
The Danish drugmaker said it found impurities in all the drugs tested
from Wells Pharmacy and Brooksville Pharmaceuticals, both based in
Florida. Novo first sued Brooksville in July, and discovered a substance
called BPC-157 in samples from Wells.
Both cases were filed in Florida on Wednesday.
The pharmacies did not immediately respond to a request for comment by
email on Thursday.
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration banned BPC-157 from use in
compounded drugs in September, saying it did not have enough data to
know whether it was harmful to humans, but that it could cause dangerous
immune system reactions.
Novo said the compounded versions of Wegovy tested from Brooksville were
also less potent than advertised, with one sample shown to be at least
19% weaker than indicated.
![](http://archives.lincolndailynews.com/2023/Nov/30/images/ads/current/culligan_sda_HFH_2023.png)
“Compounded products do not have the same safety, quality and
effectiveness assurances as FDA-approved drugs, and adulterated and
misbranded injectable compounded drugs may expose patients to
significant health risks,” Jason Brett, a Novo Nordisk executive, said
in a statement.
Novo said the lawsuits aim to stop the two pharmacies from selling
products claiming to contain semaglutide - the main ingredient in Wegovy
and Ozempic - and prevent Wells Pharmacy from claiming its products are
FDA approved or that BPC-157 has health benefits without making
customers aware of its safety risks.
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![](../images/113023PIX/health30.jpg)
Injection pens of Novo Nordisk's weight-loss drug Wegovy are shown
in this photo illustration in Oslo, Norway, November 21, 2023.
REUTERS/Victoria Klesty/Illustration/File Photo
![](http://archives.lincolndailynews.com/2023/Nov/30/images/ads/current/eaton_lda_112923.png) The drugmaker has already filed 12
lawsuits against medical spas, weight-loss clinics and compounding
pharmacies offering products that claim to contain semaglutide.
The company said it had obtained temporary orders against six of
those to stop them claiming their products are authentic, FDA
approved or associated with Novo Nordisk.
Novo's biggest rival in the obesity drug market, Eli Lilly, has also
sued several medical spas, weight-loss clinics and compounding
pharmacies this year to stop them from selling products purporting
to contain tirzepatide, the active ingredient in its diabetes drug
Mounjaro and recently-approved weight loss medicine Zepbound.
The case against Wells was filed in the U.S. District Court, Middle
District of Florida, Ocala division and the suit against Brooksville
in U.S. District Court, Middle District of Florida, Tampa division.
(Reporting by Patrick Wingrove; Additional reporting by Josephine
Mason; Editing by Bill Berkrot and Jane Merriman)
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