Eli Lilly's weight-loss drug Mounjaro comes to India, eyes big market with increasing obesity and diabetes risk

Eli Lilly launched its blockbuster diabetes and weight-loss drug Mounjaro in India on Thursday, March 20, beating rival Novo Nordisk for a much-awaited entry into the world's most populous country grappling with high rates of obesity and diabetes.

According to global media reports, US-based Lilly and Danish Novo Nordisk have seen skyrocketing global demand for their innovative weight-loss drugs, with investor interest also boosting the drugmakers' valuations.

Mounjaro price in India

Mounjaro, a once-weekly injection approved by India's drug regulator, is priced at ₹4,375 ($50.67) for a 5 mg vial and ₹3,500 ($40.54) for a 2.5 mg vial, its lowest doses, the company told new agency Reuters. Its highest dose is 15 mg. A patient in India may have to spend about $200 a month when taking a weekly dose of 5 mg, subject to doctor's prescription.

Mounjaro carries a list price of $1,086.37 for each monthly fill in the US, but the amount patients pay largely depends on their insurance plan. Lilly also offers 5 mg, 7.5 mg and 10 mg vials of Zepbound, with prices around $499 for a month's supply if customers pay directly in cash without any third-party entities.

Chemically known as tirzepatide, Mounjaro is currently sold in the UK and Europe under the same brand name for both diabetes and weight loss. It is sold as Zepbound for obesity in the US Lilly, however, said that the pricing in different geographies cannot be compared given significant variation in healthcare systems, economies and reimbursement policies in each country.

Novo's weight-loss drug, Wegovy, can cost non-insured US patients more than $1,000 a month. Novo's India team has been pushing the global leadership to launch Wegovy as early as 2025 in the country as opposed to the company's target of a 2026 launch.

The drugmaker confirmed to Reuters that Wegovy has already been approved in India, but did not specify when it would launch the drug in the country. A spokesperson did not immediately respond to Reuters' request for details on the timeline.

Novo's stock has fallen over 12 per cent so far this year, while Lilly's has jumped eight per cent. Novo is not the only competition Lilly will have to confront in India. Drugmakers such as Sun Pharma, Cipla, Dr. Reddy's and Lupin have been racing to make generic versions of these drugs to grab a share of the global market estimated to be worth $150 billion in the next decade.

The active ingredient in Wegovy is semaglutide, which is likely to go off-patent in 2026 in India. "The dual burden of obesity and type 2 diabetes is rapidly emerging as a major public health challenge in India," said President and General Manager Winselow Tucker at Lilly India.

Obesity rates in India

Obesity and diabetes rates in India, a country of more than 1.4 billion people, have been steadily climbing. The number of adults with diabetes is set to increase to over 124 million by 2045 from 74.2 million in 2021, according to International Diabetes Federation.

Meanwhile, a government survey conducted between 2019 and 2021 showed that 24 per cent of women and nearly 23 per cent of men between the ages of 15 and 49 were either overweight or obese, up from 20.6 per cent of women and 19 per cent of men in 2015-2016.

Wegovy and Novo's diabetes drug, Ozempic — which has the same main ingredient — and Mounjaro, belong to a class of therapies known as GLP-1 receptor agonists that help control blood sugar and slow digestion, making people feel fuller for longer.

With inputs from Reuters