Senate HELP Committee chair Bernie Sanders (I-VT) is moving to subpoena Doug Langa, Novo Nordisk’s EVP of North America operations, to testify, following an investigation by the committee this spring over what he calls “outrageously high” prices for the company’s diabetes and obesity treatments.
Sanders said he’s planning to hold the vote next Tuesday on issuing the subpoena and would like to hold a hearing on July 10. Specifically, Sanders is upset that Novo charges significantly more for its drugs Ozempic and Wegovy in the US than in other countries.
“The HELP Committee has reached out time and time again to Novo Nordisk to request their voluntary attendance at a hearing to discuss why they are charging Americans up to 10 or 15 times more for the exact same product sold in other countries,” Sanders said in a statement.
But Novo said that it had in fact already offered to testify.
“Every time the Chairman has made a request to Novo Nordisk we have responded and cooperated,” Novo told Endpoints News in a statement. “On multiple occasions, we have communicated our CEO’s willingness to testify and offered several dates for a hearing. Based on our continued cooperation, we feel that issuing a subpoena is unnecessary.”
Sanders has used subpoenas before to pressure companies. Earlier this year, he threatened to vote to subpoena the CEOs of Johnson & Johnson and Merck on drug pricing before they eventually agreed to appear in front of the committee prior to a subpoena vote.
According to Sanders, Novo set a list price of $969 for Ozempic in the United States, but charges $59 in Germany, $122 in Denmark and $155 in Canada.
It charges a list price of $1,349 a month for Wegovy in the US but $92 in the United Kingdom, $186 in Denmark and $265 in Canada.