The Wild West of DIY Rx Drugs

[What Would Jesus Do?]

This Post Reports podcast on getting around Rx restrictions by using compounding pharmacies is pretty interesting. They focus on the new weight loss drugs like Ozempic and Wegovy, but obviously this could apply to some other drugs.

The tl;dr version is that licensed compound pharmacies can sometimes sell you the same compounds used in approved drugs. Sometimes the actual drug formula, sometimes individual "research" compounds. Then you can use them as you choose.

In the case of the expensive new weight loss drugs that often aren't covered by insurance, the savings can be tremendous.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/podcasts/post-reports/the-wild-west-of-offbrand-ozempic/

 

[Aardvark86]

This Post Reports podcast on getting around Rx restrictions by using compounding pharmacies is pretty interesting. They focus on the new weight loss drugs like Ozempic and Wegovy, but obviously this could apply to some other drugs.

The tl;dr version is that licensed compound pharmacies can sometimes sell you the same compounds used in approved drugs. Sometimes the actual drug formula, sometimes individual "research" compounds. Then you can use them as you choose.

In the case of the expensive new weight loss drugs that often aren't covered by insurance, the savings can be tremendous.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/podcasts/post-reports/the-wild-west-of-offbrand-ozempic/

Well, maybe.

The first caveat, regarding savings, is that many plans have restrictive coverage policies with respect to compounded products, because they receive rebates that reduce the plans' costs for the drug claims.

The second, of course, is that compounding pharmacies got something of a bad name as a result of the whole Massachusetts experience a while back. As a result, FDA regulatory standards distinguishing the pharmacy practice of compounding on the one hand, and "manufacturing", on the other, have gotten tighter. Long story short - compounding is supposed to be somewhat of an exception rather than a rule.

To be clear, compounding can also serve important useful purposes. For example, Mrs. A has taken a thyroid med, and they can be a little finicky. The particular generic she originally took stopped making the product, and other manufacturers' formulations had side effects (likely from inactive ingredients). So, she uses a local independent pharmacy to compound based on the 'recipe' of the old manufacturer.

 

[THE_DEVIL]

Novo Nordisk NVO upped its sales and operating profit forecast for 2023 yet again on the back of higher demand for diabetes drug Ozempic (semaglutide) and obesity drug Wegovy. Sales for 2023 are now projected to grow by 32-38%, up from the earlier estimate of 27-33%.https://finance.yahoo.com/news/novo...Novo Nordisk NVO upped its,estimate of 27-33%.