The Eli Lilly brand seems on the corporate’s workplace in San Diego, California, U.S., Nov. 21, 2025.
Mike Blake | Reuters
Eli Lilly on Monday mentioned it’s reducing the money costs of single-dose vials of its blockbuster weight reduction drug Zepbound on its direct-to-consumer platform, LillyDirect, constructing on efforts by the corporate and the Trump administration to make the medication extra accessible.
The announcement additionally comes weeks after chief rival Novo Nordisk unveiled extra reductions on the money costs of its weight problems and diabetes medication.
Beginning Monday, cash-paying sufferers with a sound prescription can get the beginning dose of Zepbound vials for as little as $299 per 30 days on LillyDirect, down from a earlier worth of $349 per 30 days. They will additionally entry the subsequent dose, 5 milligrams, for $399 per 30 days and all different doses for $449 per 30 days, down from $499 per 30 days throughout these sizes.
Zepbound carries an inventory worth of roughly $1,086 per 30 days. That worth level, and spotty insurance coverage protection for weight reduction medication within the U.S., have been vital boundaries to entry for some sufferers.
Eli Lilly’s announcement comes simply weeks after President Donald Trump inked offers with Eli Lilly and Novo Nordisk to make their GLP-1 medication simpler for Individuals to get and afford. The agreements will lower the costs the federal government pays for the medication, introduce Medicare protection of weight problems medication for the primary time for sure sufferers and supply discounted medicines on the federal government’s new direct-to-consumer web site launching in January, TrumpRx.
However Eli Lilly’s cope with Trump facilities round reducing the costs of a unique type of Zepbound – a multi-dose pen – after it wins Meals and Drug Administration approval.
Which means Eli Lilly’s Monday announcement round slicing costs on the present single-dose vials may permit extra sufferers to get discounted remedies extra rapidly.
“We’ll maintain working to offer extra choices — increasing selections for supply gadgets and creating new pathways for entry — so extra individuals can get the medicines they want,” mentioned Ilya Yuffa, president of Lilly USA and world buyer capabilities, in a press release.
With single-dose vials, sufferers want to make use of a syringe and needle to attract up the medication and inject it into themselves. Eli Lilly first launched that type of Zepbound in August 2024.
It is unclear what number of sufferers are presently utilizing single-dose vials of Zepbound. However Eli Lilly beforehand mentioned that direct-to-consumer gross sales now account for greater than a 3rd of latest prescriptions of Zepbound.
Novo Nordisk earlier this month lowered the value of its weight problems drug Wegovy and diabetes therapy Ozempic for present cash-paying sufferers to $349 per 30 days from $499 per 30 days. That excludes the very best dose of Ozempic.
The corporate additionally launched a brief introductory supply, which is able to permit new cash-paying sufferers to entry the 2 lowest doses of Wegovy and Ozempic for $199 per 30 days for the primary two months of therapy.
