Novo Nordisk's Canadian Mistake

Cross-border access and legality

• Multiple comments explore buying semaglutide/Ozempic in Canada and using it in the US.
• FDA rules technically make most personal drug importation illegal, including from Canada, but posters stress that enforcement is lax for non‑controlled substances, small (<90‑day) personal supplies, and non‑commercial use.
• Others push back that “not enforced” ≠ “legal,” citing FDA and CBP guidance and warning that shipments can be seized.
• Some describe medical tourism: traveling to Canada, seeing a local prescriber (sometimes virtually), and returning with a legal 90‑day supply. Proximity to the border and cheap flights can make this financially attractive.
• There is mention of gray/black‑market routes (compounding pharmacies, “research peptides”) already widely used in the US.

Canadian patent lapse: blunder or strategy?

• The article’s core: Novo Nordisk’s semaglutide patent in Canada lapsed after they stopped paying small annual maintenance fees, even requesting a refund once. This is widely seen as an “insane” or “epic” failure given the drug’s value.
• Others argue it was deliberate: by letting the patent lapse, the company may have avoided oversight by Canada’s Patented Medicine Prices Review Board, allowing higher pricing while still protected for years by data exclusivity.
• Evidence is ambiguous: repeated Canadian warning letters and a long grace period suggest systemic failure is unlikely, but the existence of a separate certificate-of-supplementary-protection filing is cited both as evidence of a strong IP strategy and as inconsistent with an intentional lapse.
• Some commenters note the internal politics and dysfunction of large pharma firms and see this as a system failure with diffuse responsibility; others point to ongoing layoffs and leadership changes as fallout.

Pricing, generics, and international markets

• Ozempic in Canada is reported at ~US$175/month vs US prices in the US$500–800 range; some question whether PMPRB avoidance fits these relatively moderate Canadian prices.
• Several Canadian manufacturers are preparing generics for 2026, and commenters expect Americans to seek them despite legal risks.
• Brazil is discussed as another key market where patents expire in 2026; generics are expected to be added to the public system, with big implications given current prices relative to local wages.

Broader GLP‑1 and health themes

• Discussion covers compounding, at‑home reconstitution of injectables, and safety tradeoffs vs traveling regularly to Canada.
• Upcoming oral GLP‑1s (new patents, huge expected sales) are seen as likely to further expand the market.
• There is debate between “lifestyle first” advice (diet, exercise, sleep) and recognition that psychological factors and pharmacologic tools like GLP‑1s are crucial for many people.