2024-10-08 04:21:49
Injector pens of the weight loss drug Wegovy from Novo Nordisk, in Oslo (Norway), November 21, 2023. STAFF/REUTERS
This is an arrival that should not go unnoticed. On Tuesday October 8, the Danish pharmaceutical giant Novo Nordisk launched the marketing in France of its successful treatment for obesity, Wegovy. From that day on, French pharmacies could dispense this medication to patients with a prescription. The laboratory ensures that it has planned sufficient stocks to meet demand. On the other hand, patients will have to pay for the product in full out of their own pocket, as it is not currently reimbursed by Health Insurance.
Authorized in the European Union since January 2022, this weight loss drug, which shows promising clinical results (around 15% weight loss on average) was until now only available to a handful of patients in France. . Since July 2022, around eight thousand patients suffering from severe obesity have been able to benefit from it free of charge as part of early access, a derogation system intended to accelerate the provision, on national soil, of treatments deemed innovative. .
This is no longer the case. However, this medicinal treatment, which comes in the form of pre-filled injector pens, is not accessible to anyone who wants it. Its use is reserved for patients suffering from severe obesity, that is to say with a body mass index greater than 35 kg/m2, and aged under 65, according to the framework defined by the health authorities. Its prescription is also only indicated as second intention, when nutritional support does not give satisfactory results. Finally, the treatment must be followed in addition to a low-calorie diet and an increase in physical activity.
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There is also no question of opening the door to misuse, these diversions of the product for purely aesthetic purposes, popularized by influencers on social networks and Hollywood stars wishing to lose a few extra pounds. In order to avoid this situation, the National Agency for Medicines and Health Products announced on Tuesday that it would restrict the prescription conditions for all GLP-1 analogues, the family of drugs of which Wegovy is a part. Only doctors specializing in endocrinology-diabetology-nutrition will be authorized to initially prescribe Wegovy, indicates the “policeman” of the drug.
More than 8 million people suffering from obesity
With more than 8 million people suffering from obesity in France, a figure that has continued to increase for twenty years, the arrival of Wegovy represents tremendous hope for patients. Because, until now, the therapeutic arsenal to treat this pathology was slim. On the drug side, only Saxenda, a first generation GLP-1 analogue, also produced by Novo Nordisk, was available in France. Less effective than Wegovy, it also had the major disadvantage of not being reimbursed by Health Insurance.
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