Direct-to-consumer healthcare startup Ro announced Wednesday that its platform will now offer cheaper offerings Single-dose vial of the burden loss drug Zepbound through a brand new partnership with Eli Lillywhich goals to simplify access to the favored treatment.
Ro said it should provide a “complete end-to-end” experience on a single platform and app, allowing eligible patients to receive a diagnosis and prescription for Zepbound and have vials of the drug delivered to their home. This is made possible through a novel integration with Eli Lilly's direct-to-consumer website. LillyDirectwhich already offers home delivery of Zepbound vials via a third-party digital pharmacy, Gift health.
Gifthealth will distribute the vials to patients who receive Zepbound prescriptions through a Ro-affiliated provider.
Zepbound Bottles are a cash-only product offered only through LillyDirect. This means patients pay for it themselves with money at a lower cost than the auto-injection type of the drug. According to Ro, the vials have the “cheapest” price of a branded drug GLP-1 without insurance. Demand for GLP-1 drugs, which mimic gut hormones to suppress appetite and regulate blood sugar, has skyrocketed prior to now two years.
“Patients typically have to go to multiple locations to get Lilly's medication, such as the doctor's office and then a pharmacy,” said Zachariah Reitano, co-founder and CEO of Ro, in an interview with CNBC. “This integration truly creates a seamless patient experience where they don’t have to go anywhere else. They can access doctors, labs and a pharmacy all in one place, giving them access to Zepbound vials.”
Ro runs a weight reduction program that already prescribes Zepbound in a single-dose auto-injector pen that patients can inject directly under the skin with the push of a button. But this way of the drug is way costlier than vials, costing about $1,000 a month without insurance.
Zepbound's 2.5-milligram and 5-milligram single-dose vials cost $399 per 30 days and $549 per 30 days, respectively, without insurance, making them more accessible to those that don't have insurance coverage for the drug. Eli Lilly began offering these bottles through LillyDirect in August.
“Whether you have insurance or you want the lowest priced cash-only branded GLP-1, which is the Zepbound vials, you can get it all by coming to Ro,” Reitano said, noting that Companies will help eligible patients determine which type of the drug is best for them based on their insurance.
He acknowledged that about $400 to $500 a month for Zepbound “is still out of reach for many, but now it's far more attainable than” $1,000 or more.
The popularity of pricey treatments like Zepbound and Novo NordiskWegovy, the weight-loss drug, has caused widespread shortages within the United States. This problem has now subsided after Eli Lilly and Nordisk made efforts to extend production capability for the drugs.
Still, cheaper compounded versions of GLP-1 have gained traction given the limited supply of brand-name drugs. Eli Lilly is working to expand access to its branded product Zepbound, in what appears to be an try to crack down on compounded versions of the drug.
Patrik Jonsson, Eli Lilly's president of cardiometabolic health, said in a news release Tuesday that the goal of the brand new integration is to “break down barriers and provide patients with safe and effective options they can rely on.”
The FDA is currently reconsidering its decision to remove Zepbound from the drug shortage list after a lawsuit was filed by a trade association representing drug pharmacies. Removing Zepbound from this shortage list essentially prevents drug manufacturing pharmacies from producing customized versions of the drug.
If that happens, Reitano said Ro will “follow all applicable laws and FDA guidelines” in addition to “fight to ensure our patients have access to the most effective and affordable products.”
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