The meagre supplies of the diabetes drug that arrived mid-February have dried up.
The February resupply of semaglutide (Ozempic, Novo Nordisk) was short-lived, with the TGA now expecting normal supply to resume after June 30.
The injectable medicine is only approved in Australia for the management of poorly controlled, insulin-resistant type 2 diabetes, but has become popular off-label for use as a weight loss drug.
The shortage will officially turn one year old on April 15. Happy birthday, Ozempic shortage!
It was initially meant to abate by December 2022, but towards the end of last year this estimate was readjusted to the end of March 2023.
In mid-February it seemed like there would be brief respite, with the TGA announcing that limited supply was on the way.
Wholesalers were asked by the Department of Health to apply purchasing limits for retail pharmacies and to prioritise filling orders coming from rural and remote areas.
The February TGA announcement warned that “supply will remain quite limited” for some time, but that “Ozempic will be returning gradually over the next few months”.
Now, the TGA medicines in shortage database lists expected supply impact dates to last until the end of June.
According to the Australian Journal of Pharmacy, Ozempic sponsor Novo Nordisk quietly updated its website to announce that “stocks are available in Australia however there will be limited and intermittent availability until June 2023”.
