Canada approves 2nd generic version of semaglutide – National

The second generic version of semaglutide — the medication in brand-name drugs like Ozempic, Wegovy and Mounjaro — has been approved by Health Canada, this one manufactured by Canadian company Apotex.

Health Canada approved the first generic version of Ozempic Tuesday night. The first generic semaglutide – the active ingredient in Novo Nordisk’s Ozempic – is being manufactured by Dr. Reddy’s Laboratories in India and is approved for the once-weekly treatment of Type 2 diabetes in adults.

Canada is the first G7 country to authorize generic semaglutide. There are now seven other submissions currently under review for generic semaglutide by different companies.

“Like existing products, this semaglutide injection is indicated for the once-weekly treatment of adult patients with type 2 diabetes to manage blood sugar levels,” Health Canada’s press release states.

Dr. Hertzel Gerstein, a professor in the medicine department at McMaster University and a diabetes physician, has told Global News that there is not much difference between name-brand and generic semaglutide drugs.

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Health Canada approves 1st generic version of Ozempic

“When Health Canada approves a generic version of a drug, they go through a very rigorous process and ensure that the drug that they’re approving is as close to the original drug chemically as it can possibly be,” he said. 

“The fact that they’ve [Health Canada] approved it should reassure most people that if they’re using one of these generic drugs, it should be a very similar, if not identical, effect as would be if they would take the original, copied drug.” 

The agency is expected to make regulatory decisions on more of these submissions in the coming weeks and months.

According to Felix, a Canadian integrated health-care platform, the average cost of Ozempic injections can be between $200 and $450 per month, depending on each Canadian province.

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The price of Mounjaro ranges between $300 and $550 per month in Canada. Wegovy’s current list price is expected to cost $5,066 per patient per year, or roughly $400 per month.

Health Canada has stated that many generic medications are 45 to 90 per cent cheaper than the brand name versions.

“The numbers I’ve heard are anywhere from like $40 to $80,” Dana Small, a neurology and neurosurgery professor at McGill University, said to Global News. “That’s a major decrease in cost.”

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