Novo Nordisk promotes its obesity pill
A view shows a Novo Nordisk sign in front of its office in Bagsvaerd, on the outskirts of Copenhagen, Denmark, on July 14, 2025.
Tom Little | Reuters
A version of this article first appeared in CNBC’s Healthy Returns newsletter, which brings the latest health news straight to your inbox. Subscribe here to receive future editions.
All eyes are on new anti-obesity pills – and a treatment for it Novo Nordisk could be the first to reach patients.
The Danish drugmaker’s 25-milligram oral version of the obesity drug Wegovy could be approved by the end of the year. As Novo Nordisk awaits approval from regulators, it bolstered the case for its experimental pill by releasing new data last week at the ObesityWeek scientific conference in Atlanta to underscore its safety and effectiveness.
“I think it expands the evidence base to help healthcare professionals and patients make further decisions about what might be right for their particular case and for them in particular,” said Dr. Jason Brett, chief medical officer for the US at Novo Nordisk, said in an interview about the new findings.
Bringing the pill to market will be crucial for the drugmaker, which just lost a heated bidding war Pfizer about the obesity biotech Metsera. Novo Nordisk is working to strengthen its pipeline as it loses share of the blockbuster weight-loss drug market to its main rival Eli Lilly.
Here’s what the conference results say about the pill’s performance.
Cardiovascular Benefits
New analysis from the company’s OASIS 4 clinical trial showed that the pill improved blood sugar control and provided cardiovascular benefits.
In one analysis, 71.1% of participants with prediabetes who took the pill achieved normal blood sugar levels after 64 weeks, compared to 33.3% taking placebo.
People who took the pill were more likely to lose 15% or more of their body weight than people who took a placebo in the study. And patients who lost at least 15% of their body weight saw greater improvement in blood pressure and reductions in inflammatory markers and triglycerides.
Comparable results with Wegovy
An indirect comparison between the OASIS-4 study and the earlier study of injectable Wegovy showed that the oral and injectable formulations provided comparable results in terms of weight loss and cardiometabolic markers, as well as safety.
Brett said: “That’s not too surprising to me because semaglutide is semaglutide. We’re just getting it into the system through a different route of administration.” Semaglutide is the active ingredient in Wegovy and the drugmaker’s diabetes shot Ozempic.
Brett said some people are happy with a once-weekly shot, but stressed it’s important for health care providers and patients to have alternative options.
“I think it will really open up access further and help expand the market” for patients who could benefit from weight-loss treatment but don’t take shots for reasons such as fear of needles, Brett added.
Weight loss during menopause
Further analysis found that the Novo Nordisk pill was associated with significant weight loss in women with obesity, regardless of what stage of menopause they were at.
Premenopausal women lost an average of 18.2% of their body weight over 64 weeks, while premenopausal women lost an average of 15% and postmenopausal women lost an average of 15.7% of their weight.
Brett acknowledged the small differences between groups, but noted that weight loss was “robust and significant” in all groups. He said weight loss can be more challenging for people going through menopause because of the hormonal changes they experience.
Improvements in physical function
Another analysis found that people who were taking the pill at the start of the study and self-reported low physical performance experienced improvements after 64 weeks compared to the entire study population. Their level of physical functioning was determined using a questionnaire called the Patient Global Impression of Status.
A “significant change” in physical function was achieved in most patients, 77.3%, taking the pill, compared to 42.9% taking a placebo, according to Novo Nordisk.
Feel free to send tips, suggestions, story ideas and data to Annika at a new email address: annika.constantino@versantmedia.com.
Healthcare Latest: Could These GLP-1 Pricing Be Extended to Employer Plans?
I was in Washington most of last week, in the Oval Office, attending the White House announcement of lower prices for Eli Lilly and Novo Nordisk’s GLP-1 drugs.
While Trump administration officials touted the hard-fought negotiations to reduce prices for GLP-1 weight-loss drugs on Medicare and Medicaid plans to levels paid in Europe, my question was whether they might extend those prices to commercial plans.
Half of Americans have employer-provided and private health insurance, many of which do not cover GLP-1 for weight loss because of cost. I asked how insurers could raise these prices above government rates so that workers could afford the drugs.
“That’s a good question,” President Donald Trump said, pointing to Medicare Director Chris Klomp, who helped negotiate the deal with drugmakers.
“Companies are committed to ensuring that prices remain the same in the worst case scenario [most-favored nation] on GLP-1s and are committed to continuing to negotiate these prices downwards depending on volume,” Klomp said.
When it comes to health care services, lower rates for Medicare and Medicaid often result in a cost shift toward commercial plans that charge higher prices to offset provider margins.
Reducing prices to the nation’s MFN level would require pharmacy benefit managers to work with drugmakers to try to match government prices.
Some of the pharmacy benefit managers praised the administration’s pricing agreement, but it is not clear at this time whether they will renegotiate the 2026 GLP-1 PBM contracts. Government pressure may be needed to incorporate MFN pricing into commercial plans next year.
Given Trump’s post this week denouncing “money-sucking insurance companies,” the big insurers that own the big PBMs may already be feeling the pressure.
You can always send tips, suggestions, story ideas and data to Bertha at bertha.coombs@versantmedia.com.
