99% drop in Ozempic shipments to US residents after BC introduces restrictions
VICTORIA – The government of British Columbia says the number of online Ozempic prescriptions filled by Americans from pharmacies in that province has dropped 99 percent since it introduced rules to protect local supplies for diabetic patients.
Weight loss is one of the side effects of the injectable medication, which has seen its popularity skyrocket, with Americans ordering it from two pharmacies in the Vancouver area at prices lower than in the US.
The Department of Health said 30,700 prescriptions for the injectable medication were shipped to the United States from January 1 to April 19. But between April 20 and May 31, that number dropped to 111 prescriptions mailed to U.S. residents.
Health Minister Adrian Dix announced legislation on April 19 that aims to prevent a shortage of the drug semaglutide, which includes Ozempic, the pill form Rybelsus and Wegovy, which are used specifically to treat obesity.
Online purchases of the drug have been restricted for foreigners, who can still purchase it from a pharmacy if they need it while visiting Canada, Dix said.
In January, the province offered limited coverage of Ozempic as a second-line therapy for type 2 diabetes patients to control blood sugar when metformin is ineffective. That sparked a surge in demand for Ozempic from U.S. residents, who received 88 percent of total prescriptions at the end of February.
Dix said that while there is no shortage of Ozempic in BC or elsewhere in Canada, the legislation could be used if there are possible shortages of other drugs in the future.
“This is something we need to continue to monitor because these won’t be the last drugs of interest in this way,” Dix said, adding that the lack of some injectables limited supplies of Ozempic in parts of the US.
The high cost also attracted customers to Canada following the hype from social media influencers and celebrities about its weight loss effects.
A Texas-based physician licensed to practice in Nova Scotia allegedly prescribed Ozempic to US residents. He was temporarily suspended after writing 17,000 prescriptions for the medication shipped to the US
The College of Physicians and Surgeons of Nova Scotia continues its investigation, while the College of Pharmacists of BC is investigating the actions of two online pharmacies that filled the prescriptions.
Federal Health Minister Jean-Yves Duclos said in mid-April that regulations governing medical practice may need to be tightened by regulatory colleges in each province to prevent “incompetence” by other doctors, who can also write thousands of prescriptions for drugs that going abroad. .
Duclos said he would raise the matter with his provincial counterparts so Canadians have access to the medicines they need.
Dix said health ministers will meet this fall and likely discuss what steps they can take “as a team” when it comes to selling prescription drugs online to foreign customers.
However, he said that while each province has its own regulatory board, “the international sale of a drug is also a federal matter. So there are some steps that (the federal government) need to take.
“The broader issue is that we weren’t supposed to get Ozempic (from the US) so we could sell it back.”
This report from The Canadian Press was first published on June 16, 2023.
Canadian Press health coverage is supported by a partnership with the Canadian Medical Association. CP is solely responsible for this content.
