The head of Ozempic manufacturer Novo Nordisk on Tuesday defended the high price of the company’s highly sought-after obesity and Type 2 diabetes drugs, blaming pharma middlemen and insurers for the price.
Testifying before the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions, Novo Nordisk CEO Lars Fruergaard Jørgensen argued that it’s not actually Novo Nordisk that decides how much people pay for Ozempic and Wegovy. But Jørgensen also said he’s concerned that lowering the cost of the medications could lead pharmacy benefit managers, the entities that negotiate drugs on behalf of insurers, to stop covering the drugs.
“We don’t decide the price for patients,” Jørgensen said. “That’s set by insurance companies.”
