British drug-cost watchdog recommends use of Novo’s Wegovy to lower heart risks

April 1 (Reuters) – UK’s drug cost-effectiveness watchdog has recommended Novo Nordisk’s Wegovy to reduce the risk of serious heart problems or strokes in obese or overweight adults, becoming the first GLP-1 drug to be endorsed for this use.

With the recommendation from the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE), a 2.4-milligram dose of the will be available through the state-run National Health Service, Novo said on Wednesday.

Wegovy will be incorporated within existing cardiovascular treatment pathways, allowing doctors to consider the drug alongside standard therapies for the secondary prevention of heart problems in overweight or obese adults, the company said.

NICE’s recommendation was based on a study that involved more than 17,600 people, which showed Wegovy reduced the risk of major cardiovascular events by 20%, compared with placebo.

In 2024, Wegovy got UK regulatory approval to cut the risk of major cardiovascular events in obese or overweight adults with preexisting heart disease, though access was limited to patients paying out-of-pocket when prescribed for that use.

Around one in every four adults in the UK is estimated to be living with obesity, according to the NHS.

Rival Eli Lilly wants the UK to regularly raise NHS drug prices ​and phase out a multi-billion-pound rebate scheme if ‌it is to resume investment, the Financial Times reported on Monday, citing an interview with Lilly’s international businesses president, Patrik Jonsson.

Lilly had raised the UK list price for its weight-loss drug, Mounjaro, by up to 170% last year, amid pressure from President Donald Trump’s administration to get drugmakers to raise medicine prices in Europe to allow for price cuts in the U.S.

Wegovy, chemically known as semaglutide, belongs to a class of medicines called GLP-1 receptor agonists.

Originally developed to help control blood sugar in patients with type 2 diabetes, it was also found to suppress appetite and promote a feeling of fullness.

(Reporting by Mariam Sunny in Bengaluru; Editing by Shreya Biswas)