Amazon Pharmacy begins carrying Novo Nordisk’s Wegovy weight loss pill

Amazon announcement Friday he now offers Novo NordiskWegovy’s diet pill via its digital pharmacy.

Novo Nordisk started to deploy an oral version of its injectable obesity drug Wegovy in the United States on Monday, offering an initial dose for cash-paying patients at $149 a month. Patients with insurance coverage can get the pill for as little as $25 per month.

The daily pill comes to market with some of the lowest cash prices in the booming obesity and diabetes drug industry, which pricey weekly shots from Novo Nordisk and Eli Lilly have long dominated. Its availability on Amazon highlights Novo Nordisk’s strategy to expand beyond traditional channels and reach new patients.

Amazon said eligible customers with insurance can pay as little as $25 for a month’s supply of the drug. Its cash payment option will start at $149 per month.

In the coming weeks, Amazon announced that it will also offer the Wegovy pill through its prescription kioskswhich are located in certain One Medical clinics.

The e-commerce giant launched Amazon Pharmacy in 2020, as part of its deeper push into the multi-billion dollar U.S. healthcare industry. The service was born from the acquisition of the online pharmacy Pill pack for approximately $750 million in 2018. She later purchased a primary care clinic A medical in 2022 for $3.9 billion.

Amazon has sought to attract users to its service by offering fast delivery and price transparency. It offers same-day prescription delivery to nearly half of U.S. consumers, Amazon said.

The company did not reveal the number of Amazon Pharmacy users, but analysts estimated this could generate around $2 billion in annual revenue.

In October, Weight Watchers said it would partner with Amazon Pharmacy to provide weight loss medications to its members. Amazon Pharmacy also collaborated with Elie Lilly to help deliver certain prescription drugs, including its obesity drug Zepbound, purchased through the drugmaker’s direct-to-consumer website.

After its launch this week, the Novo Nordisk pill is also available in more than 70,000 U.S. pharmacies like CVS And Costcoas well as certain telehealth providers, including Ro, LifeMD, Weight WatchersGoodRx and Novo Nordisk’s NovoCare Pharmacy.

Patients paying cash will also be able to access the initial dose of the pill for $149 per month on President. Donald TrumpThe direct-to-consumer website, TrumpRx, under an agreement concluded by Novo Nordisk with his administration in November. The site will also launch in January, but it’s unclear exactly when.

Health experts say oral options could expand access to obesity treatment in the United States, likely reaching entirely new people who were afraid of needles or thought the injections were too severe or aggressive for them to start.

Eli Lilly has a rival obesity pill expected to get approval from the Food and Drug Administration later this year.