Crypto News: Are these weight-loss drugs safe?

Hi! It's Madison in New York. The war over compounded weight-loss drugs wages on. More on that in a second...

GSK will pay as much as $2.2 billion to resolve US court cases related to allegations that Zantac was contaminated with a suspected carcinogen.
Baxter plans to resume production of IV fluids by the end of the year at its biggest plant, which was hit hard by Hurricane Helene in North Carolina.
Health insurance premiums paid by companies for their workers' family coverage exceeded $25,000 in 2024.

Novo Nordisk and Eli Lilly have been warning consumers for months about the dangers of taking copycat versions of their popular weight-loss shots, but until now they've shown little evidence to back up their claims.

This week, Novo's scientists published a peer-reviewed study in the journal Pharmaceutical Research highlighting key differences between its brand-name products and copycats. The Danish drugmaker tested 16 injectable versions of semaglutide, the active ingredient in its Ozempic and Wegovy medicines. The list included copycat drugs sourced from a variety of compounding pharmacies, telehealth companies and medical spas. (A Novo spokesperson declined to share which companies' products were tested.)

The knockoff drugs had impurities and potential stability issues, according to the study. A spokesperson for Novo said the potency of many of the copycats was "significantly lower" than the manufacturers claimed and some included ingredients that were banned by US regulators.

The scientists noted that more research is needed to understand how these differences affect the drugs' safety and efficacy. They urged health regulators to require a "robust assessment" of copycat medicines to mitigate any potential risks to patients.

The Alliance for Pharmacy Compounding, an organization that represents compounding pharmacies, didn't immediately respond to a request for comment about the study.

It's estimated that hundreds of thousands of Americans have used copycat versions of Novo and Lilly's medicines, spending as much as $1 billion a year on them, according to investment bankers who work with the industry.

Some telehealth companies are trying to be more transparent about the safety and quality of their weight-loss medications. Hims & Hers and WeightWatchers, which offer compounded drugs, get the medicines independently tested and allow customers to access the certificates of analysis.

Companies are allowed to sell knockoff versions of drugs that are deemed to be in short supply. Both Novo and Lilly have been investing heavily to expand their manufacturing capacity. US regulators recently determined that Lilly's drugs are no longer in shortage, which will likely limit future compounding of those medicines. — Madison Muller

CNBC goes inside the black market of obesity drugs. (Watch)

Eli Lilly and Insitro ink a new kind of AI drug development deal, STAT reports.

We may have passed peak obesity, according to the Financial Times.

Health questions? Have a tip that we should investigate? Contact us at AskPrognosis@bloomberg.net.

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