UK (Parliament Politic Magazine) – On Friday, the UK-based private online pharmacy, Right-angled, was still providing Novo Nordisk’s Ozempic, a diabetes medication, for sale on its website to individuals seeking to utilize the weekly injections as a weight loss solution, despite a government directive to cease such sales.
In the United Kingdom, Ozempic is authorized for the management of blood sugar levels in individuals with type 2 diabetes. Nevertheless, in the past year, a significant number of individuals without diabetes sought Ozempic as a means to lose weight by obtaining it through online pharmacies that prescribed it “off-label.”
Right-Angled Online Pharmacy Selling Drugs Against Government Order
In July, the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) and the National Health Service (NHS) in the UK declared a nationwide scarcity of Ozempic and all other medications falling under the category of “GLP-1 receptor agonists” due to a significant surge in demand, both for approved and off-label purposes.
This declaration cautioned that the shortage is expected to persist until at least mid-2024. Furthermore, it mandated healthcare providers, including private online pharmacies, to cease prescribing Ozempic to individuals without type 2 diabetes as promptly as possible, with a hard deadline of October 18. Moreover, the directive prohibited prescribers from initiating new patients with type 2 diabetes on this medication for the duration of the shortage.
The Right-angled website showcased their offer to deliver the drug on Friday, categorizing it under “general health: weight loss.” They specified that it was intended for “diabetes management but can aid in weight loss as off-label.”
Right-angled, an online pharmacy chain based in the UK, and the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) did not provide immediate responses to inquiries seeking comment. The previous day, Right-angled, a privately owned and UK-registered pharmacy specializing in delivering prescription medications to customers who place online orders, extended an offer to supply Ozempic to one of its customers, as confirmed by an email reviewed by a news channel.
Weight Loss Medications Offered By Online Pharmacies
The email, dated October 19 and provided to Reuters by the customer, urged, “Grab yours before it’s gone again,” and included a photo of an Ozempic pen inside its packaging.
On Friday, Reuters conducted a review of the websites of other private online pharmacies that had previously prescribed Ozempic for weight loss earlier this year. Among them, Farmeci, for instance, listed only Wegovy and Saxenda, which are both weight-loss medications from Novo Nordisk that, like Wegovy, are approved for weight management, within its weight-loss treatments section.
Another online clinic, Juniper, which is supported by venture capital, explicitly labels Ozempic as a medication “licensed to treat diabetes in the UK” on its website.
Meanwhile, a third online pharmacy, Simple Online Pharmacy, includes a note in its description of Ozempic stating, “Because Ozempic is primarily a drug used in diabetes, we choose not to prescribe this, so as not to affect critical supply chains for diabetic patients.
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Are There Concerns with Compounded Semaglutide?
The FDA has received reports of adverse events in patients who have used compounded semaglutide. It is important to note that patients should not use compounded drugs when an approved drug is available for their treatment. Patients and healthcare professionals need to be aware that the FDA does not assess the safety, effectiveness, or quality of compounded versions of these drugs.
Furthermore, the FDA has received information indicating that some compounders may be utilizing salt forms of semaglutide, such as semaglutide sodium and semaglutide acetate. These salt forms differ from the active ingredients found in approved drugs, which contain the base form of semaglutide. The FDA is not aware of any legitimate basis for compounding with these salt forms that would comply with the FD&C requirements for the types of active ingredients that can be compounded.
On April 27, 2023, the FDA communicated its concerns regarding the use of salt forms in compounded products in a letter to the National Association of Boards of Pharmacy. Patients need to be vigilant and understand that certain products labeled as ‘semaglutide’ may not actually contain the same active ingredient as FDA-approved semaglutide products and could potentially be salt formulations.
These salt-based products, including semaglutide sodium and semaglutide acetate, have not demonstrated their safety and effectiveness. To ensure their safety and effectiveness, patients should exclusively acquire medications containing semaglutide through a prescription from a qualified healthcare provider.