Novo Nordisk today announced Wegovy® (semaglutide) tablets 25 mg have surpassed three million prescriptions in just over five months, establishing Wegovy® pill as one of the strongest US pharmaceutical launches by volume on record.¹ The three million milestone corresponds to one prescription filled roughly every five seconds, reflecting continued uptake since We-govy® pill became available in January 2026. Further underscoring its rapid adoption, We-govy® pill reached its initial one million prescription milestone just 12 weeks after reaching US pharmacies and online providers (week of 1/5/26 to week of 3/23/26), with an additional two million prescriptions accumulated in an even shorter span of just 10 weeks (week of 3/23/26 to week of 6/1/26). The majority of new prescriptions filled for Wegovy® pill (more than 80%) are for people new to GLP-1 therapy, indicating the oral formulation is expanding the obesity treat-ment market, rather than replacing existing therapies.¹
“Wegovy® offers adults with obesity significant weight loss, along with diet and exercise, and is FDA-approved to lower the risk of major cardiovascular events such as death, heart attack, or stroke in adults with obesity with known heart disease – making Wegovy® pill truly distinct. With Wegovy® pill and Wegovy® HD available for weight management, patients and their healthcare providers are making choices that fit their needs, resulting in the clear adoption for both treat-ments,” said Jamey Millar, executive vice president, US Operations of Novo Nordisk. “Novo Nordisk remains determined to continue playing a major part in addressing the global public health challenge of obesity by deeply understanding the needs of those who live with it. That is why we are at ADA 2026 – to talk to patients, healthcare professionals, and investors to present our data but also listen and learn.”
This year, more patients starting a new weight management therapy have filled prescriptions for Wegovy® than any other available obesity medication. Alongside the three million prescrip-tion milestone for Wegovy® pill, the recently launched Wegovy® HD (semaglutide) injection 7.2 mg has demonstrated strong uptake in the early days of availability.1
Expanding affordable access to medicines is a priority for Novo Nordisk, including the expansion of coverage for those with insurance in the US. Those with commercial insurance coverage can access Wegovy® for as little as $25 per month through existing savings programs.* The recently announced Medicare GLP-1 Bridge builds on these efforts to expand access and will provide eligible Medicare beneficiaries living with obesity access to Wegovy® (semaglutide) injection and tablets for a $50 monthly copay†, beginning July 1, 2026. In addition, Wegovy® is available through a range of access options, including more than 70,000 US pharmacies, Novo-Care® Pharmacy, select telehealth providers, and others.
This announcement coincides with Novo Nordisk presenting an array of clinical data at the American Diabetes Association® 2026 86th Scientific Sessions in New Orleans (June 5-8, 2026), including a variety of Wegovy® analyses in adults with obesity.
Novo Nordisk is preparing for the first launches of the Wegovy® pill outside the United States in the second half of 2026, including the recently announced approval and launch in the United Arab Emirates.
Investor relations event
Novo Nordisk will host an investor event covering ADA 2026 data and the Wegovy® pill commer-cial milestone on 7 June 7, 2026 at 6:30 pm CDT. The event will be accessible via live webcast on the Novo Nordisk investor website.
*Pay as little as $25, subject to a maximum savings of $100/month. Eligibility and restrictions apply. Government beneficiaries excluded. Month defined as 1 box of 4 pens of Wegovy® and 1 bottle of 30 tablets of Wegovy®. Novo Nordisk reserves the right to modify or cancel this program at any time. See full terms at WegovyTerms.com and NovoCarePharmacyTerms.com.
†Terms apply. For eligible Medicare patients prescribed Wegovy® for a covered FDA-approved indica-tion. Eligibility criteria will be determined by CMS. This information is not a guarantee of coverage. Month defined as 1 box of 4 pens of Wegovy® and 1 bottle of 30 tablets of Wegovy®.
About the prescription data
The source data for the over 3 million prescriptions for all strengths of Wegovy® pill includes Novo Nordisk Inc. partner-reported paid claims only from January 5, 2026 through June 2, 2026. Pharmaceutical launch volume data based on IQVIA paid total prescriptions (TRx) of over 1888 US branded launches analyzed (excluding vaccines) since 2013, at 4 months post launch. Source data for 82% of Wegovy® pill new-to-brand (NBRx) starts year-to-date (YTD) 2026 is IQVIA LRx, YTD based on week ending January 9, 2026 through May 15, 2026, with “new to GLP-1” based on 12 months look back for any other (obesity or diabetes) GLP-1 medicine (not including com-pounded products). IQVIA data of paid TRx and paid NBRx data were used to measure We-govy® pill or Wegovy® HD volume data over the specified time periods, with NBRx using a 12 month lookback period; if a paid prescription for the same brand does not exist in the look-back period, then a script is deemed to be new to the brand.1
What is Wegovy
Wegovy® (semaglutide) tablets are a prescription medicine used with a reduced-calorie diet and increased physical activity to:
– reduce the risk of major cardiovascular events such as death, heart attack, or stroke in adults with known heart disease and with either obesity or overweight.
– help adults with obesity, or some adults with excess weight (overweight) who also have weight-related medical problems to lose weight and keep the weight off.
Wegovy® (semaglutide) injection is a prescription medicine used with a reduced-calorie diet and increased physical activity to:
– reduce the risk of major cardiovascular events such as death, heart attack, or stroke in adults with known heart disease and with either obesity or overweight.
– help adults and children aged 12 years and older with obesity, or some adults with ex-cess weight (overweight) who also have weight-related medical problems to lose weight and keep the weight off.
Wegovy® contains semaglutide and should not be used with other semaglutide-containing products or other GLP-1 receptor agonist medicines.
It is not known if Wegovy® injection is safe and effective:
– to reduce the risk of major cardiovascular events (death, heart attack, or stroke) in peo-ple under 18 years to help children under 12 years of age lose weight and keep the weight off
It is not known if Wegovy® tablets are safe and effective for use in people under 18 years of age
Novo Nordisk is a leading global healthcare company with a heritage of more than 100 years in dia-betes care. Building on this foundation, our purpose is to drive change to defeat serious chronic dis-eases — from diabetes and obesity to rare blood and endocrine disorders — by pioneering scientific breakthroughs, expanding access to medicines, and working to prevent and ultimately cure disease. We are committed to long-term, responsible business practices that deliver financial, social and envi-ronmental value. Headquartered in Denmark and operating in around 80 countries, Novo Nordisk employs approximately 67,900 people and markets products in roughly 170 countries. In the United States, Novo Nordisk has a 40-year presence, is headquartered in New Jersey and employs approxi-mately 10,000 people across more than 10 manufacturing, R&D, and corporate locations in seven states plus Washington, D.C. For more information, visit novonordisk.com and novonordisk-us.com, and follow us on Facebook, Instagram, X, LinkedIn, and YouTube
Source: Riyadh Daily