US Senate committee investigates pricing of Novo's Ozempic and Wegovy

April 24 (Reuters) - A U.S. Senate committee said on Wednesday it had launched an investigation into the prices of Novo Nordisk's diabetes and weight loss drugs Ozempic and Wegovy in the United States.

Senator Bernie Sanders, chair of the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions, sent a letter to Novo's CEO seeking more information on U.S. prices for the two drugs, which are higher than the prices in other countries.

The committee also asked Novo if it will substantially reduce both the list price and the net price of both the drugs, and why the company was charging a higher price for the weight loss drug Wegovy than Ozempic, which contains the same compound.

"Novo Nordisk remains committed to working with policymakers to advance solutions to support access and affordability for all patients, and we reiterated this commitment in our conversation with Chairman Sanders," the company said in a statement to Reuters.

Ozempic, approved for diabetes patients, and Wegovy belong to a class of drugs called GLP-1 agonists that reduces food cravings and causes the stomach to empty more slowly. (Reporting by Christy Santhosh and Pratik Jain in Bengaluru; Editing by Shounak Dasgupta)