UK Pharma Industry Trade Association Restores Wegovy/Ozempic Maker Novo Nordisk's Membership After 2 Years Of Suspension

On Monday, Novo Nordisk A/S NVO returned to full membership of the Association of the British Pharmaceutical Industry (ABPI) following extensive audits of the Wegovy maker's compliance procedures and governance by the Prescription Medicines Code of Practice Authority (PMCPA).

The Association of the British Pharmaceutical Industry is the trade association for over 120 companies in the U.K.

In March 2023, the ABPI Board decided to suspend Novo Nordisk from membership of the ABPI for two years following a complaint related to a LinkedIn post that did not make clear Novo Nordisk's involvement nor state whether it was a promotional or non-promotional meeting for its obesity drugs.

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Given that the course was for a therapy area, Novo Nordisk was involved in and ended up giving a Patient Group Direction (PGD) to ensure that even non-prescribers could indirectly prescribe its product. This appeared to be promotional.

The complaint alleged that the PGD given was part of what Novo Nordisk offered individual health professionals. This had value and was given to individuals for their benefit to run private clinics, which was bribing health professionals with an inducement to prescribe.

"Over the past two years, Novo Nordisk has responded positively and actively to the requirements laid down by the ABPI Board, and I am pleased to welcome them back into full engagement as ABPI members," said Richard Torbett, CEO of the ABPI, on Monday.

In March, Novo Nordisk introduced NovoCare Pharmacy, a direct-to-patient delivery service to improve access to Wegovy (semaglutide) for cash-paying patients.

The program offers all dosage strengths of the weight-loss medication at a reduced price of $499 per month for uninsured individuals or those whose insurance does not cover obesity treatments.

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