Rise and shine, everyone, another busy day is on the way. We can tell because the official mascots are racing madly about the Pharmalot grounds and the parade of vehicles is picking up nearby. As for us, we are dutifully firing up the coffee kettle to brew another cup of needed stimulation. Our choice today is Jack Daniels. Yes, this is a real thing. So please feel free to join us. Now, though, the time has come to get cracking. So here is the latest assembly line of items of interest for your enjoyment. We hope you find these useful and have a smashing day. Best of luck and, as always, do stay in touch. …
Eli Lilly’s blockbuster drug tirzepatide, sold as Mounjaro for type 2 diabetes, has been cleared to treat obesity, making it the second in a highly effective class of weight loss medications to enter the market, STAT reports. The long-awaited U.S. regulatory approval of the injectable drug, which will be marketed as Zepbound for obesity, is a milestone for Lilly. It also introduces stiff competition for Novo Nordisk, which has had to limit starter doses of its obesity treatment Wegovy due to ongoing shortages. Novo’s Wegovy, and its diabetes drug Ozempic, has been shown in trials to cut around 15% of body weight, while Zepbound has shown up to 21% weight loss in trials.
Sen. Bill Cassidy (R-La.), the highest-ranking Republican on the U.S. Senate health policy committee, vehemently opposes Medicare negotiating drug pricing, and floated another possibility, at least for blockbuster obesity drugs: Federal agencies could take the lead on researching ways to transition people off the medicines, STAT tells us. Cassidy spoke recently to an economist who suggested that the U.S. National Institutes of Health “should craft sponsor studies where (a patient) would have a year’s worth of treatment, and then you would substitute for Ozempic a dietary therapy” like meal deliveries.