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Cost rises to $199 in second month

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Move adds to price competition in weight-loss drugs

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FDA has told compounding pharmacies to end mass sales

By Amina Niasse

NEW YORK, Aug 4 (Reuters) - Online weight-loss company

Noom said on Monday it would sell copies of Novo Nordisk's

Wegovy at an introductory price of $119 for up to a

quarter of the branded drug's standard dose, giving patients a

less costly way to try the medication.

After the first month, Noom's price for compounded

semaglutide, the generic name for Wegovy, rises to $199 a month

for a maximum 0.6-milligram dose, compared to the branded

version's typical dose of 2.4 mg.

The move presents more price pressure for brand-name

manufacturers, who have been lowering prices to compete in the

cash-pay market.

Targeting the GLP-1 protein, weight-loss drugs slow

digestion and make people feel fuller but often lead to

gastrointestinal side effects. In clinical trials, they have

resulted in people losing 15% to 20% of their body weight.

Wegovy clinical trials did not evaluate doses as low as

0.6 mg. But research presented in May found a half dose of

semaglutide was as effective in weight loss as the regular dose.

Noom said its program's lower dose allows it to make the

product more affordable and boosts adherence because smaller

doses can mean fewer side effects.

"Obviously with less medicine, there's less cost and we pass

it on as savings to the patient," said Noom CEO Geoff Cook.

While few people pay Wegovy's list price of about $1,349 a

month in the U.S., Novo offers a direct-to-consumer cash price

of $499 a month for all doses up to 2.4 mg. This month it

promoted a first-fill price of $299 for some customers.

On a unit basis, Noom's $199 for 0.6 mg is more expensive

than the Novo program, although the Novo price stays the same at

all doses so the unit cost rises at smaller doses.

Noom is continuing its program called GLP-1Rx that offers

compounded versions of semaglutide at a maximum dose of 1.2 mg

for $149 the first month and $279 afterward.

The company also offers Eli Lilly's ( LLY ) Zepbound for

$349 from Lilly Direct and generic liraglutide, an older GLP-1

that is not as effective.

Online telehealth site Hims and Hers Health's ( HIMS ),

Noom's biggest rival, offers a one-year prepaid program for $199

a month for a "personalized" dose of compounded semaglutide.

Amid surging demand since 2022, a shortage of Zepbound and

Wegovy prompted the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to allow

compounding pharmacies to sell copies, boosting Noom, Hims and

LifeMD ( LFMD ).

After the shortage ended by early this year, the FDA told

compounding pharmacies to end mass sales. But companies have

continued to compound semaglutide, saying it is legal for

treating patient needs that are not met by branded versions.

Jeffrey Egler, Noom's chief medical officer, said patients

who want to address pre-diabetic high blood sugar or reap other

benefits would also be candidates for the program.

"It's more, 'I want to reduce this chronic inflammation. I

want to feel better today,'" said Cook, who said he has taken a

low dose of semaglutide since October.