'Weight loss drugs can be life changing but are not without risks,' says Dr Vishnu Radhakrishnan as he explains the truth behind Ozempic and Mounjaro.
Danish pharma major Novo Nordisk on Friday launched its blockbuster type 2 diabetes treatment injection Ozempic, globally popular for its weight-loss benefits.
While the introduction of branded generics is likely to accelerate volumes for GLP-1 agonists, value growth may moderate because of price erosion.
Abbott will exclusively distribute and market Extensior in the country, becoming the second company to secure sole distribution rights for Novo's semaglutide portfolio in India, after Emcure Pharma.
'The innovators have been able to more or less stay where they are, in terms of revenue even as the generics are seeing exponential growth due to their affordability.'
Over the past year, the sale of injectable GLP-1 agonists (used to treat type 2 diabetes and obesity) such as Mounjaro, Wegovy and Ozempic have surged a whopping 218 per cent.
The semaglutide patent expiry next year could unleash a wave of generic versions from Indian drugmakers, with prices expected to go lower -- at least 80 per cent.
'Any promotional activity carried out under the pretext of disease awareness, influencer engagement, corporate campaigns, or similar activities that create brand recall/product visibility of the prescription shall also be treated as violations.'
'As more patients are prescribed these drugs, intolerance due to gastrointestinal and other side effects will become more visible, leading to higher discontinuation rates.'
Inspections conducted across 49 entities including pharmacies, wholesalers, and clinics to detect violations and misleading marketing practices.
Emcure Pharmaceuticals on Monday said it saw Poviztra, its newly launched semaglutide brand, as a "long-term" opportunity in India's fast-evolving obesity and cardiometabolic therapy market, even as price competition in the glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) segment intensified.
At the heart of this debate is Section 3(d) of the Patents Act, a safeguard designed to prevent drugmakers from extending monopoly protection through trivial modifications to existing medicines.
Study suggested that constant use of Semaglutide may be linked to development of a condition called non-arteritic ischemic optic neuropathy.
