Fake Ozempic sites, Zepbound shortage, J&J 's sales miss: Pharma news

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Image for article titled Fake Ozempic sites, more Zepbound shortage, and J&J 's sales miss: Pharma news roundup — Graphic: Images: George Frey, Brendan McDermid, Brendan McDermid, Mike Blake

The Food and Drug Administration said this week that more doses of Eli Lilly’s popular diabetes and weight loss drugs will be in limited supply through the end of June. Johnson & Johnson’s recent bets on heart devices helped boost sales, but the company’s total revenue in the first quarter of the year failed to meet analysts’ expectations. And more than 250 websites that were hawking fake Ozempic and other weight loss drugs got shut down.

Check out those stories and more pharma news highlights.

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Even more doses of Eli Lilly’s Zepbound and Mounjaro are officially in a shortage, FDA says

Mounjaro is displayed in a pharmacy — Image: George Frey (Reuters)

Eli Lilly, the world’s most valuable pharmaceutical company, can’t keep up with soaring demand of its popular diabetes and weight loss drugs. The Food and Drug Administration updated its drug shortage database to include most doses of the pharma giant’s Mounjaro and Zepbound. The agency said all doses except for 2.5 milligram injections of each medication will be in limited supply through the second quarter of the year, due to increased demand.

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Eli Lilly’s weight loss drug Zepbound could help treat sleep apnea, paving the way to Medicare coverage

An injection pen of Zepbound, Eli Lilly’s weight loss drug — Image: Brendan McDermid (Reuters)

Eli Lilly announced that the drug behind Zepbound was found to help alleviate sleep apnea in patients with obesity in late-stage clinical trials. If federal regulators expand the approved use of Zepbound to include sleep apnea, the medication could join Novo Nordisk’s Wegovy in being covered by Medicare.

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Johnson & Johnson’s bet on heart devices boosted sales—but it still missed analysts’ expectations

A Johnson & Johnson banner is displayed on the front of the NYSE in New York — The company’s revenue was up 2% year-over-year to $21.38 billion in the three months ending March 31.

Johnson & Johnson’s recent investments in medical devices helped boost sales, but the company’s total revenue in the first quarter of the year failed to beat Wall Street expectations. The company’s medical device segment experienced the biggest growth in the company during the three months ending March 31, up 4.5% year-over-year to $7.8 billion.

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UnitedHealth stock pops even after a big cyberattack cost it big money

UnitedHealth’s net income plummeted 122% in in the three months ended March 31 to a loss of $1.22 billion from a profit of $5.6 billion.

Image: Mike Blake (Reuters)

UnitedHealth Group, the largest health insurance company in the U.S., was the top performer in S&P 500 after it reported higher-than expected revenue amid the fallout of a massive cyberattack earlier this year.

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Hundreds of websites have been hawking fake Ozempic and other weight loss drugs. More may be coming

Boxes of Ozempic and Wegovy made by Novo Nordisk — Image: Hollie Adams (Reuters)

BrandShield, a cybersecurity firm that detects trademark infringement and counterfeit sales online, said it shut down more than 250 websites that were hawking fake weight loss drugs.

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Activist investor blasts Novavax for not using mRNA fears to boost COVID-19 vaccine sales

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved the use of Novavax’s COVID-19 vaccine in 2022.

Image: Dado Ruvic (Reuters)

The activist hedge fund Shah Capital blasted the leadership of Novavax for not leveraging concerns some people have about mRNA vaccines to boost sales of its own traditional, protein-based COVID-19 vaccine.

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The weight loss drug Ozempic is not linked to suicidal thoughts, regulators say

Ozempic is displayed in a pharmacy — Skyrocketing demand for Novo Nordisk’s Wegovy and Ozempic alone helped boost Denmark’s GDP in 2023.

A European Union regulator found no evidence of a “causal” link between GLP-1 drugs — such as Ozempic and Wegovy — and suicidal thoughts. The European Medicines Agency’s (EMA) Pharmacovigilance Risk Assessment Committee (PRAC) announced the findings of its nine-month probe of the issue on April 12.

Fake Ozempic sites, more Zepbound shortage, and J&J 's sales miss: Pharma news roundup

Plus, an activist investor wants Novavax to leverage mRNA vaccine fears, and Zepbound is found to help with sleep apnea