Novo Nordisk's Obesity Drug Shortage: Crunch Expands To First Gen Med Saxenda Amid Increased Demand

While Novo Nordisk A/S NVO is still struggling with a shortage of its popular obesity medicine Wegovy (semaglutide), another weight loss drug has also made it to the FDA's list of drugs facing a supply crunch.

According to an update on the FDA's drug shortage list, Saxenda (liraglutide) will have limited availability through the end of 2023 because of surging demand.

People turned to Novo Nordisk's first-generation weight-loss drug, Saxenda, after Wegovy went into short supply.

Liraglutide is a weaker GLP-1 agonist than Novo's semaglutide, which is used in Wegovy for weight reduction and Ozempic for diabetes. 

First approved by the FDA in late 2014, Saxenda generated Q1 FY23 sales of DKK3.3 billion, up 64% Y/Y.

To tackle the booming demand, Novo said in May that it was temporarily reducing the U.S. supply of low doses of Wegovy to limit the number of new patients and to ensure that existing patients can get their meds. 

The Wegovy entry on FDA's drug shortage list, updated, shows the limited supply of Wegovy at 0.25mg/0.5mL, 0.5mg/0.5mL, and 1mg/0.5mL through September, while the higher doses of 1.7mg/0.75mL and 2.4mg/0.75mL are available.

Recently, the European Medicines Agency initiated a probe for Novo Nordisk's weight-loss medications amid reports of suicidal risks associated with these drugs.

The investigation follows referrals from the Icelandic Medicines Agency, which reported two cases of suicidal thoughts linked to the drugs Saxenda and Ozempic.

Price Action: NVO shares are up 3.81% higher at $166.83 on the last check Thursday.