DLNews Health:

Ozempic’s New Price Tag: $499 and a Shot at Fair Access

Novo Nordisk is shaking up the diabetes marketplace with a new program that gives self-paying type 2 diabetes patients access to FDA-approved Ozempic® for a flat $499 a month. The move comes as more Americans struggle with high drug costs, turning some toward questionable knockoff alternatives—a trend the company says it wants to stop in its tracks.

Dave Moore, Executive Vice President of Novo Nordisk U.S. Operations, put it bluntly: “If even a single patient feels the need to turn to potentially unsafe and unapproved alternatives, that’s one too many.” With that, the Danish drugmaker is casting its net wider, making authentic Ozempic available through multiple channels, including NovoCare® Pharmacy with home delivery, the company’s own websites, and a fresh partnership with GoodRx that extends the $499 deal to more than 70,000 pharmacies nationwide.

The timing is no accident. Ozempic, the best-known GLP-1 medication, isn’t just a blood sugar regulator. It carries FDA approval for reducing cardiovascular risk in type 2 diabetes patients with heart disease and, more recently, for slowing the march of kidney failure. Millions of Americans are already prescribed the drug, yet those without insurance or adequate coverage often face sky-high costs—sometimes even higher than wholesale pricing.

By joining forces with GoodRx and pushing this capped monthly rate, Novo Nordisk is trying to reset the narrative: reliable, FDA-approved medicine should not be a luxury item. It’s also a calculated shot at competing with the shadow market of unregulated semaglutide products sold online.

Whether this new $499 sticker price is a breakthrough in access or just the opening salvo in a longer affordability battle remains to be seen. But for patients staring down both rising health risks and rising costs, the offer may feel like a lifeline—delivered not just in a pen injector, but in the promise of real, regulated care.