Novo Nordisk launches a new Wegovy subscription as it trails Eli Lilly in the weight loss drug race

Novo Nordisk launched a multi-month subscription program for its Wegovy obesity drug on March 31, offering eligible self-pay patients lower monthly prices on both the injection and pill versions of the product.

Patients can choose three-, six-, or 12-month plans, with longer commitments carrying lower monthly prices. A 12-month subscription to the Wegovy injection costs $249 per month — a savings of $1,200 per year compared with monthly pricing. A 12-month subscription to the pill runs the same $249 per month, saving $600 per year. Monthly prices hold flat regardless of dose changes within the subscription period, the company said.

The program launched through telehealth providers Ro, WeightWatchers, and LifeMD, with Hims & Hers and Sesame to follow. Patients enroll directly through those platforms. Novo Nordisk said the program is not yet available through its NovoCare direct-to-consumer pharmacy.

Cash-paying patients who do not enroll in a subscription can still access the lower-dose Wegovy pill — 1.5 mg and 4 mg — for $149 per month. Starting in September, the 4 mg dose will rise to $199 per month. The recently approved 7.2 mg injection dose will be added to the subscription program at a later date.

"The new Wegovy subscription program removes barriers, providing people who enroll a simple, affordable, and consistent way to start and stay on genuine, FDA-approved treatment," Ed Cinca, Novo's senior vice president of marketing and patient solutions, said in a statement.

Cinca told CNBC that patients can opt out of the subscription while it is active if they choose to stop. He added that the program is intended to help patients "not only start but stay on therapy" and manage pricing uncertainty over time.

Staying on GLP-1 drugs has been a persistent challenge for patients. According to CNBC, a 2025 study estimated that roughly 65% of patients with obesity stop treatment within a year.

The subscription launch comes at a competitive moment for Novo Nordisk. The company received FDA approval for an oral version of Wegovy in late 2025, and the pill has seen strong early uptake among self-pay patients. But Eli Lilly $LLY, which holds an estimated 60% share of the branded GLP-1 market in the U.S. compared with Novo's roughly 39%, is expected to bring a competing oral GLP-1 to market later this year, according to CNBC. Novo Nordisk has also guided for declining sales and profit in 2026 amid pricing pressures and increasing competition.

For patients with commercial insurance, Wegovy remains available for as little as $25 per month through existing savings programs, the company said. The drug is also stocked at more than 70,000 U.S. pharmacies.