An injection pen containing Eli Lilly's weight-loss drug Zepbound is on display in New York City, U.S., December 11, 2023.
Brendan McDermid | Reuters
Most doses of Eli Lilly's highly popular weight-loss drug Zepbound and diabetes counterpart Mounjaro will be in short supply in the second quarter of this year as demand rises, according to an update to the Food and Drug Administration's drug shortage database on Wednesday.
There is a shortage of all doses of Zepbound and Mounjaro apart from the 2.5 milligram versions of both treatments. An earlier update stated that some doses of both drugs would be in limited supply through April.
The new update suggests that insatiable demand for a vibrant class of weight-loss and diabetes drugs is still squeezing supply, even as Eli Lilly and its chief rival Novo Nordisk work to increase production of those treatments.
Many patients have difficulty finding the injectable treatments, which have skyrocketed in demand and help them shed significant pounds over time. These treatments are also known as incretin medications, which mimic intestinal hormones to suppress appetite and regulate blood sugar levels.
Eli Lilly did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the FDA's update on Wednesday.
Eli Lilly said in February that it has achieved its goal of doubling production capacity for such incretin drugs by the end of 2023. The company said it will expand production this year with “equal urgency,” with the biggest increases occurring in the second half of 2023. the year.
By that point in the year, the company expects production of salable doses of incretin drugs to be at least one and a half times higher than in the second half of 2023.
Eli Lilly has also said that a new factory in Concord, North Carolina, will begin producing incretin drugs as early as the end of this year, with products available in 2025. The company will also build a handful of other facilities over time. in the coming years, including a location in Germany and two new factories in its home state of Indiana.
Novo Nordisk has announced similar efforts. Some doses of Novo Nordisk's weight-loss drug Wegovy and diabetes counterpart Ozempic are also in short supply, according to the FDA's website.