Novo Nordisk reprimanded for allegedly failing to disclose payments

The manufacturer of the weight loss jab Wegovy has been reprimanded for allegedly failing to disclose or accurately report payments to healthcare and patient organisations.

Novo Nordisk breached clauses under the Association of the British Pharmaceutical Industry (ABPI) code of practice, according to the Prescription Medicines Code Of Practice Authority (PMCPA).

The company said it is taking the issue “extremely seriously” and “is dedicated to working transparently and ethically”.

The complaint was made by three individuals, who were colleagues at two separate universities, regarding the alleged failure to report payments to two healthcare organisations.

Following an “in-depth investigation”, the complainants claimed Novo Nordisk allegedly failed to report, inaccurately reported, and misreported payments to healthcare organisations and patient organisations between 2015 and 2022.

The probe alleged 30 organisations were missed from the company’s disclosures and claims Novo Nordisk misreported 65 payments.

The PMCPA said Novo Nordisk accepted breaches of clauses 24.1, 24.4, 24.5, 27.7, 9.1 and 2 of the 2019 code and clauses 28.1, 29.1, 29.2, 31.1, 31.2, 5.1 and 2 of the 2021 code.

These clauses include failing to document and publicly disclose annually certain payments made directly or indirectly to health professionals, other relevant decision-makers and healthcare organisations, failing to make publicly available a list of patient organisations which it supports, and failing to make disclosures annually in respect of each calendar year in the first six months after the end of the calendar year in which the payments were made.

It added that its panel “decided on balance not to report Novo Nordisk to the code of practice appeal board for it to decide whether the imposition of further sanctions was appropriate”.

It noted that the company “had been the subject of several cases in relation to the failure to appropriately disclose transfers of value,” adding that “additional sanctions had been imposed and that Novo Nordisk was already the subject of the audit process at the request of the code of practice appeal board”.

It said the “matters raised in this case were closely similar to matters already before the appeal board both in terms of the nature of the matters considered and that the amount undisclosed was significant”.

Novo Nordisk has its headquarters in Bagsvaerd in Denmark, and was founded in 1923.

Among its products is semaglutide, sold under the brand names Ozempic and Wegovy, the latter of which has been approved to treat obesity on the NHS.

A Novo Nordisk spokesman said: “Novo Nordisk is dedicated to working transparently and ethically, taking the reporting of these historical transfers of value extremely seriously.

“In fact, most of the missed disclosures included in this case were already part of our self-reported voluntary admission in November 2023 to the PMCPA.

“For those that were not included in that admission, these have been captured through our improved processes and have been accurately disclosed.

“All transfers of value related to this case were related to legitimate activities, in line with the UK pharmaceutical industry’s code of practice.

“We continue to strengthen our compliance framework in the UK and remain committed to adhering to the ABPI code of practice and maintaining the highest possible ethical standards required by the pharmaceutical industry.”