Ozempic maker says unapproved compounded drugs being sold in Canada
Global News
Novo Nordisk says it has filed a complaint with Health Canada regarding the promotion and sale of compounded semaglutide – a key ingredient in both Ozempic and Wegovy.
Unapproved, compounded versions of a popular diabetes and weight-loss drug are being sold in Canada, the Ozempic maker said, amid a warning about dosing errors that have resulted in some people being hospitalized in the United States.
Novo Nordisk told Global News on Monday that it has filed a complaint with Health Canada regarding the promotion and sale of compounded semaglutide – which is a key ingredient in both Ozempic and Wegovy – in Canada.
“We are aware that several compounding pharmacies, weight loss clinics, and medical spas are purporting to sell or offer unapproved compounded semaglutide products both in Canada and the U.S.,” a spokesperson for Novo Nordisk Canada said in an emailed statement.
“Patients should be aware that Novo Nordisk is the only company in Canada with Health Canada-approved products containing semaglutide and the only company in the U.S. with FDA-approved products containing semaglutide, identified under the trade names Ozempic, Rybelsus and Wegovy.”
Compounding is when pharmacies or other practitioners have the substances needed to mix and prepare specialty medications, and do so. It was frequently used in Canada by pharmacies during the COVID-19 pandemic when manufactured supplies of children’s pain medications were in short supply, but the pharmaceutical components to mix those medications were still available in some pharmacies.
It is only meant to be done in cases where there is limited supply of a medication “and should not be done solely for economic reasons for the healthcare professionals,” according to Health Canada guidelines on compounding.
On Friday, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) issued an alert, warning doctors and patients about dosing errors involving compounded semaglutide injectable products that were dispensed in multiple-dose vials.
The health regulator said it had received reports of adverse events, with some requiring hospitalization, that may be related to overdoses due to patients incorrectly self-administering the compounded drug and health-care providers miscalculating doses.
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