Novo Nordisk CEO Lars Fruergaard Jorgensen has agreed to testify before the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee, under Chairman Senator Bernie Sanders, to address the high prices of the weight-loss drugs Wegovy and Ozempic.
"I appreciated my discussion with Mr. Jorgensen this afternoon and thank him for agreeing to voluntarily testify solo before the HELP Committee regarding the high costs of Ozempic and Wegovy in the United States," Sanders stated. "The planned subpoena vote will be cancelled as it is no longer necessary."
Initially, Sanders intended to subpoena Doug Langa, Novo Nordisk's Executive Vice President for North America operations, to appear before the Committee. However, Jorgensen will now attend the hearing scheduled for September.
Confirming this development, Novo Nordisk stated, "As part of our ongoing cooperation with the Chairman, our CEO has reaffirmed our commitment. He and Chairman Sanders had a productive conversation and agreed on a mutually acceptable date for the hearing. We look forward to discussing solutions that ensure access and affordability for all patients within the complex U.S. healthcare system."
This Senate hearing is part of Sanders' investigation into why the prices of the company's weight-loss drugs are significantly higher in the U.S. than in other countries.
According to Fortune, a Wegovy prescription costs around $1,349 per month in the U.S., compared to $140 in Germany and $92 in the U.K.
"The American people are fed up with being exploited by giant pharmaceutical companies that make huge profits every year while charging us outrageous prices," Sanders remarked last week.
"The Committee eagerly anticipates Mr. Jorgensen's explanation for why Americans are paying up to ten or fifteen times more for these medications than people in other countries," Sanders added.
Responding to Sanders' concerns in May about drug costs, Novo Nordisk argued that the structure of the U.S. healthcare system contributes to the high prices, as a significant portion of its revenue is allocated to intermediaries in the U.S., as reported by Bloomberg.
