Zepbound weight loss drug shortage has no immediate end in sight, Eli Lilly says

Zepbound drugmaker Eli Lilly is working to increase its weight loss drug supply. But some steps to get there, including building a new plant, will take months to execute.

Despite Eli Lilly’s assurances about an ample supply of its new weight loss drug Zepbound, the company is now facing widespread shortages just months after its approval. While the drugmaker is working to resolve the issue, a quick fix is unlikely, it says, with no immediate end to the shortage in sight.

The Food and Drug Administration approved Zepbound in November, introducing a new competitor to Novo Nordisk’s blockbuster weight loss drug Wegovy. 

Zepbound officially went into shortage in April, according to the FDA, mere months after Lilly CEO Dave Ricks told NBC News that supply of the drug was not a concern. As of Wednesday, all but one dosage was listed as in “limited availability” through the end of June on the FDA’s website.

Lilly is blaming the shortage on the huge demand for the drug, saying it can’t produce enough to meet everyone’s needs for diabetes and for weight loss. Zepbound is the same drug as the company’s diabetes medication Mounjaro, but rebranded for weight loss. Both contain the active ingredient tirzepatide.

Like Zepbound, all but one dosage of Mounjaro is in shortage, according to the FDA. 

https://www.nbcnews.com/health/health-news/zepbound-shortage-eli-lilly-weight-loss-drug-rcna148232

---