Novo Nordisk says its Wegovy pill has passed 3 million US prescriptions

Novo Nordisk's oral Wegovy pill has passed 3 million US prescriptions since it launched on Jan. 5, and the company says more than 80% of those prescriptions went to people who had not previously used a GLP-1 medicine ^[1]. Novo announced the figures at the American Diabetes Association's 2026 Scientific Sessions in New Orleans ^[1].

The Wegovy pill contains semaglutide, the same molecule as the injectable Wegovy, Ozempic and Rybelsus. Novo launched it in the US several months ahead of Foundayo, Eli Lilly's rival oral GLP-1, which contains orforglipron ^[1].

CEO Mike Doustdar, who took the top job in August 2025 after 34 years at the company, tied his confidence to the pill's launch. "I have said publicly I am a lot more optimistic today than the day I got the job, on many fronts," he told Fierce Pharma ^[1]. Of the launch pace against new competition, he said: "In light of competition having arrived—if that's not acceleration, I don't know what is" ^[1].

Doustdar also argued that Novo's production capacity is no longer the constraint it once was. After supply shortages that at one point put semaglutide products on the FDA's shortage list, the company's ability to ramp up manufacturing is now "second to none," he said ^[1].

Novo has not disclosed how many individual patients the 3 million prescriptions represent, or how many of the new-to-GLP-1 patients stayed on the drug. The 80% figure is the company's own characterization of prescription data ^[1]. Pricing and insurance coverage for the pill were not addressed in the interview ^[1].

Doustdar's comments come after a difficult stretch for Novo. The company has faced branded competition from Lilly's Zepbound (tirzepatide), supply problems and the rise of compounded semaglutide, and its share price fell from mid-2024 ^[1]. Novo has said its Wegovy products carry a cardiovascular risk reduction indication, while Zepbound holds a secondary indication in obstructive sleep apnea ^[1].

Earlier in 2026, Novo's next-generation candidate CagriSema—a combination of semaglutide and the amylin analog cagrilintide—underperformed tirzepatide in an 809-participant open-label study. At 84 weeks, a 2.4/2.4-mg dose of CagriSema was linked to 23% average weight loss, compared with 25.5% for a 15-mg dose of tirzepatide ^[1]. Doustdar disputed the significance of that single comparison, saying the world gets "obsessed with one number," and described CagriSema as "a really good asset" ^[1].

Why it matters for patients

An oral GLP-1 gives people who dislike injections or prefer a pill a second form of semaglutide to discuss with a clinician. Novo's claim that most prescriptions went to first-time GLP-1 users suggests demand is still coming from outside the existing pool of patients rather than only switching between products ^[1].

The availability of two oral GLP-1 pills—Wegovy and Foundayo—also means more than one manufacturer is now competing in that format, after the injectable market was dominated for years by Novo and Lilly ^[1].

Several things remain unknown. Novo has not reported how many people filled a first prescription and then stopped, what share of prescriptions were covered by insurance, or how the pill's real-world weight loss compares with injectable semaglutide ^[1]. The company also has not disclosed list price or out-of-pocket costs for the pill in this announcement ^[1].

What happens next

Novo filed its US application for CagriSema in obesity or overweight with at least one weight-related condition in December, and the FDA is expected to decide on approval later in 2026 ^[1]. No other dated milestones were given in the interview ^[1].