Anna Wysock, an elementary school teacher and mother of two, experienced a moment of embarrassment when she was unable to ride a roller coaster with her 7-year-old son due to a safety issue with the ride’s seatbelt. This incident led her to seek a solution for her weight loss struggles, and she eventually found success with the injectable diabetes drug Mounjaro, which she obtained through a prescription and a manufacturer’s coupon. However, when the discount ended, the cost of the drug increased significantly, leading her to explore alternative options.
Wysock discovered a local clinic that offered cheaper, compounded versions of weight-loss drugs. Compounding pharmacies are allowed to create medications that are essentially copies of commercially available drugs if their active ingredients are listed on the FDA’s drug shortage list, and the active ingredient in weight-loss drugs such as Wegovy and Zepbound is on this list.
The demand for these weight-loss drugs is high, but they are expensive and in short supply. To meet this demand, various providers such as physicians, medical spas, IV infusion clinics, telehealth entrepreneurs, and pharmacies are offering compounded versions of these drugs. However, state regulators are having trouble keeping up with the proliferation of these compounded drugs, as they are responsible for licensing and oversight of compounding pharmacies.
Some states have announced investigations into illegal dispensing by medical spas and other providers, while others are looking to beef up their oversight. The FDA regulates commercial drugs, but the licensing and oversight of compounding pharmacies falls to states. Compounding pharmacies are supposed to make medications for specific patients, but some are breaking these rules by bulk manufacturing medications without FDA approval.
Problems with compounded weight-loss drugs may go undetected because compounding pharmacies aren’t required to report instances of patient harm involving their medications. Some states have found compounders breaking the rules, and there have been instances of illegal online pharmacies selling substandard or fake weight-loss medications.
Pharmaceutical giants Novo Nordisk and Eli Lilly have filed lawsuits against medical spas, weight-loss clinics, and pharmacies for falsely marketing their compounded products as commercial medications. Some states are focusing their investigations specifically on medical spas and IV infusion clinics that offer compounded weight-loss medications.
For patients like Wysock, compounded versions of weight-loss medications have been life-changing, enabling her to continue to lose weight, maintain a healthier lifestyle, and be present for her family and students. However, it is important for patients to ensure that the medications they are taking were made by a licensed and reputable compounder.
