The maker of diabetes and weight-loss drugs Ozempic and Wegovy was in the hot seat Tuesday as Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders grilled him about high prices in the U.S. that far exceed the cost in European countries as well as Canada.
Novo Nordisk CEO Lars Jorgensen testified before the Senate Health Committee, chaired by Sanders, as the sole witness in a hearing on prices, which in the U.S. can exceed $1,000 a month while abroad they can go for as low as $60.
Pharmaceutical companies often argue that cutting prices reduces coverage because the pharmacy benefit manager (PBM) middlemen skew toward including more expensive drugs in their coverage calculations as they get more money back, according to Reuters.
Sanders countered that patients are often refused coverage because of the cost.
“I have received commitments in writing from all of the major PBMs that if Novo Nordisk substantially reduced the list price for Ozempic and Wegovy, they would not limit coverage,” Sanders told Jorgensen. “In fact, all of them told me they would be able to expand coverage for these drugs if the list price was reduced.”
Sanders then asked for a similar commitment from Jorgensen, whose company he said has raked in $50 billion in Ozempic and Wegovy sales since 2018. U.S. sales account for 72% of those earnings.
“Yes, anything that can help patients get access I’m supportive of, and that also includes collaborating and negotiating with anyone who can help that,” Jorgensen replied.
Sanders asked twice more, each time getting an equally ambiguous-sounding answer.
The Vermont independent opened the hearing by demonstrating the price disparities between the U.S. and other countries, with residents of this country paying $969 monthly for Ozempic in contrast to $155 in Canada, $122 in Denmark and $59 in Germany.
Wegovy costs Americans $1,349 a month but is just $186 in Denmark, $140 in Germany and $92 in the United Kingdom, Sanders said. While Jorgensen attributed the difference to the U.S.’ more complex health system, Sanders said that did not explain such disparate numbers.
“Nobody here is asking Novo Nordisk to provide charity to the American people,” Sanders said. “All we are saying, Mr. Jorgensen, is treat the American people the same way that you treat people all over the world. Stop ripping us off.”
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