Novo is testing tiered subscriptions to boost Wegovy adherence—but whether patients stay on their meds will hinge on post-prescription support from its telehealth partners.

Their ad budgets are shifting from linear TV to digital channels like CTV and social media, but big TV events still garner significant spending.

Novo drops court fights to secure GLP-1 distribution, which will drive other telehealth brands to weigh pharma deals against legal risk.

It rolled out a direct-to-employer payment model aimed at expanding weight loss drug access at work with flat pricing.

Data shows the first decline in obesity rates in US adults, but children and teens moved in the opposite direction.

Drugmakers’ price drops don’t affect all patients the same. Brands and marketers must decode cost complexities where patients already seek out weight loss advice, like on social media.

Novo’s lawsuit and regulator warnings signal a crackdown on compounded GLP-1s across telehealth.

Weight loss hype pushed Lilly well ahead of Novo, yet Novo’s early pill win signals a turn toward more affordable, convenient obesity treatments.

Weight and health improvements vanish within two years without sustained use, new research finds.

As more Americans take weight loss drugs, eating, shopping, and healthcare expectations are all evolving

Hims & Hers is officially bringing its subscription weight loss program to the UK. But rising prices of some GLP-1 medications in the UK may lower the incentive for consumers to sign up for a membership with a telehealth company offering prescriptions.

Eli Lilly is dropping the price of its weight loss drug Zepbound for cash-pay customers, following rival Novo Nordisk’s price cut less than two weeks ago. Lilly and Novo’s newly lowered D2C prices will help some cash-pay consumers, but the affordability gap is a major barrier to broader adoption.

Novo Nordisk has applied for approval of a higher-dose version of its weight loss drug Wegovy using a special FDA review pathway for a faster decision. Novo’s move to introduce a higher-dose Wegovy shifts competitive expectations in the weight loss category in terms of speed and effectiveness, with over 20% weight loss becoming the new benchmark for success.

Eli Lilly became the first healthcare or pharma company to reach a $1 trillion valuation. Pharma’s entry into “the trillion-dollar club” is largely driven by success in the obesity treatment category that’s poised to reshape consumer health and wellness. However, Lilly’s particular rapid growth signals that while first-mover advantage in a high-demand disease area matters, it doesn’t guarantee staying on top. Pharma manufacturers can make up for not being first by committing to innovative drug development that drives more efficacious products, pursuing new clinical indications, and correctly anticipating market developments that may impact supply and demand.

Novo Nordisk is dropping the cash-pay price of its blockbuster GLP-1 drugs Wegovy and Ozempic from $499 per month to $349 for existing patients. Novo is betting on lower prices to lure some patients away from Zepbound. However, Lilly’s D2C strategy for Zepbound is working—the drugmaker said that about 35% of new Zepbound prescriptions are from the self-pay channel. It’s a signal that most patients who are prescribed Zepbound aren’t asking to switch to Wegovy. That could shift if the price gap between the two drugs widens.

Eli Lilly will no longer offer CVS Health’s prescription drug benefit plan for its employees, per Bloomberg. Lilly may have been considering another pharmacy benefits manager outside of this news. But it’s more likely that CVS’ choice to promote a rival drug (Wegovy) over Zepbound was Lilly’s breaking point—showing that even employee benefit plans can be used as leverage in the battle for weight loss drug dominance.

Novo Nordisk and Eli Lilly struck a deal with the Trump administration to lower GLP-1 prices in exchange for expanded Medicare and Medicaid coverage. It’s by far the most consequential pharma agreement to date For Novo and Lilly, it’s a tradeoff: lower prices for higher patient and prescription volume—a bet that should pay off over time, especially since tariff relief is part of the deal.

President Donald Trump remarked late last week that the cost of brand-name GLP-1 drugs could drop to $150 in the US. Trump didn’t detail which insurance markets the lower-cost GLP-1s would apply to, or how he plans to force Novo Nordisk and Eli Lilly to drop their prices. With prescriptions surging, GLP-1 drugmakers must prepare for tougher scrutiny and calls from the government, doctors, and patients alike to make treatments more affordable. Pharma marketers should intensify messaging around their weight loss drugs being cost-effective over the long haul by preventing more serious chronic diseases.

Pharma brands are partnering with Reddit to engage with patients more directly, according to a panel discussion at last week’s Advertising Week New York event. Healthcare and pharma brands need to be on Reddit, where communities actively discuss wellness, medications, and medical services. However, healthcare and pharma marketers must avoid obvious promotions, and instead post information that can help people while conducting their own Q&As hosted by company leaders with medical credentials.

Novo Nordisk lost its federal appeals court challenge of the prescription drug price negotiation program in the Biden-era Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) prescription drug price negotiation program, which could open the door for even more price checks. We see a path where the current administration revamps, or simply rebrands, IRA price negotiations as CMS negotiations to save taxpayer money and help consumers. Brands under pressure to drop prices through the IRA and executive orders should continue those good–faith efforts but also encourage the administration to put the same pressure on insurance companies and pharmaceutical benefit managers to lower healthcare costs.