India’s market for diabetes and weight-loss ‌drugs is set for a shake-up after the Danish drugmaker’s patent on semaglutide, the active component in Ozempic and Wegovy, expired on March 20.

At least half a dozen Indian drugmakers, including Dr Reddy’s Zydus and Sun ​Pharma, launched multiple brands of the blockbuster diabetes and weight-loss drugs, up to 70% cheaper ​than Novo’s drugs in some cases.

Ozempic’s and Wegovy’s lowest doses of 0.25 ⁠mg in India will now be priced at 1,415 rupees ($15.04) for a weekly shot ​from 2,200 rupees and 2,712 rupees earlier, respectively, Novo Nordisk India said in a statement on Tuesday.

The ​average price reduction across doses is 23.8% for Ozempic and 27% for Wegovy, it said.

“We’ve heard from patients and doctors, and we’re acting on that feedback,” said Vikrant Shrotriya, managing director at Novo Nordisk India, adding that ​the drugs also offer cardiovascular benefits.

The entry of generics will also challenge Novo and ​U.S. rival Eli Lilly, which launched its blockbuster diabetes and obesity drugs in India last year, as they seek to ‌cement ⁠their position in the country.

Lilly’s Mounjaro became India’s top-selling drug by value within months of its launch, according to data from Pharmarack, a research firm.

Novo’s Ozempic is available in three dose strengths of 0.25 mg, 0.5 mg and 1 mg in India, while Wegovy has five ​dose strengths.

Ozempic’s and Wegovy’s ​1 mg weekly ⁠shot is now priced at 2,275 rupees ($24.18) after price cuts of 18.5% and 34.2%, respectively. The company slashed Wegovy’s 0.5 mg dose price ​by 41.5% to 2,025 rupees.

“..this price reduction reflects how innovation can ​become more ⁠accessible when market dynamics evolve,” Venu Gopal Pareek, a bariatric surgeon said, adding that patients might choose Novo’s drugs over generics given that it is an original molecule, and if the price ⁠difference ​is not beyond 15%.

The US. has until now managed its medical donations through the Global Health Supply Chain Program – Procurement and Supply Management – run by the private contractor Chemonics. From its establishment in 2016 to 2024, it delivered a total of more than $5 billion of HIV and malaria products to 90 countries, mostly in sub-Saharan Africa and Asia.

That program was halted when President Donald Trump froze international aid on the first day of his presidency in January last year, ​stranding millions of dollars of supplies in ports and warehouses – from drugs for HIV, which causes AIDS, to insecticide-treated bed nets. Much of that work restarted after the U.S. issued ​a waiver for products that were life-saving.

However, its future has been up in the air as the administration has reduced and reshaped foreign aid, dismantling the ⁠US. Agency for International Development (USAID), cutting budgets, and switching from management by contractors to bilateral agreements with other countries.

US AID UPHEAVAL LIKELY TO CAUSE MORE MEDICINE SHORTAGES

Five sources said the speed of ​the change could cause shortages or gaps in the provision of life-saving products in some countries, with grave impacts.

The US. State Department asked U.S. staff in 17 African countries and Haiti in an ​email on Tuesday to cease implementing the supply program by May 30.

It said the contract with Chemonics was ending on September 30, in line with all USAID awards – although its official end date is in November.

The email, seen by Reuters and verified by two sources, also said there could be “immediate risks to service continuity if (the) transition is rushed or incomplete”.

It did not lay out a clear transition plan, instead asking each US. country office to set ​out how it would implement the handover, and to inform Washington of any risks or need for more time.

A spokesperson said the State Department had “not provided any technical direction to Chemonics to ​cease operations by May 30 or any other date”. Chemonics declined to comment.

Six sources said the US. was talking to the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria about using its supply platform to procure ‌and deliver donations ⁠of global health products in future.

The Global Fund, a Geneva-based health initiative, already manages the purchase and supply of around $2 billion a year in health products for the three deadly infectious diseases, alongside partner organisations in the countries where it works. It also has an online procurement platform used by partners.

Two of those sources said earlier discussions between the organisation and the US. government had focused on a November 2027 transition.

They said the new timeline was unrealistic as ordering medical products for use in hard-to-reach locations could take up to a year, rather than the matter of weeks ​now being envisaged.

The Global Fund declined to comment. ​The State Department did not respond to ⁠specific questions on whether it was talking to the Fund, but said it would use available pooling mechanisms to buy supplies at the lowest prices from private manufacturers.

AMERICA-FIRST AID

Last year, the Trump administration said its global health plans would prioritise funding front-line health supplies, health workers and technicians, and ​working directly with individual countries.

The America First Global Health Strategy, published in September, said contractors were part of the “significant inefficiency and waste” that ​it was trying to root ⁠out of the system.

But the speed of the changes to how the US. delivers aid has already caused problems around the world, including shortages of malaria drugs for children and gaps in HIV prevention.

The State Department spokesperson said the current system was “a bloated piece of an obsolete development model” that “does not put the American taxpayers first and instead helps to line the pockets of large US.-based development firms”.

They said ⁠the US. government ​had now signed 28 bilateral health pacts with recipient governments, and would mostly use private logistics firms to distribute ​supplies.

In recent months, Washington has pledged to provide funding directly to the governments of countries including Kenya, Rwanda and Uganda, alongside promises of increased national spending.

But details are still being hammered out. The Kenya agreement faces a court challenge by ​Kenyan activists over data privacy concerns, while negotiations with the Zambian government have been delayed.

New Delhi wellness clinic Klarity Skin Clinic touts a “Mounjaro ​bride” package, while other clinics have woven weight-loss injections into “pre-wedding” transformation packages typically focused on skin treatments and hairstyle makeovers.

In a social media video, Klarity offers “guided nutrition, Mounjaro and ‌smart workouts” to prepare brides to walk down the aisle. The clinic did not respond to a request for comment.

Eight doctors interviewed by Reuters said they have been fielding inquiries from brides, and some grooms, about taking weight-loss drugs before taking their vows. Many asked for Eli Lilly’s Mounjaro, the first GLP-1 medication to enter India’s market for both diabetes and weight loss. It has become more sought after than Novo Nordisk’s rival Wegovy, the doctors said.

“Over the last few months, over 20% of ​the queries we’ve received for obesity injections are from to-be brides, who also openly give us a timeline on how soon they are getting married,” said Rajat Goel, a bariatric surgeon ​at Hindivine Healthcare in New Delhi.

He said he prescribed the drugs only if patients were medically eligible, not for cosmetic use.

TRADITION AND SOCIETAL PRESSURE

Weddings in India ⁠are grand affairs for families that can afford them, with culture and tradition exerting a strong influence. Many marriages continue to be arranged by families, often bringing expectations around physical appearance and financial status.

Aditi, a ​26-year-old finance worker from Mumbai, consulted a doctor in November for a weight-loss prescription after exercise and diet failed to get the desired results.

“When I see the result, I feel happy,” Aditi said about losing ​10 kilograms (22 pounds) on Mounjaro before her February wedding. “If I am not happy, I don’t feel confident. I did not want to feel that way at the time of the wedding.”

She is one of the half a dozen brides, and one groom, who spoke to Reuters about pre-wedding use of weight-loss drugs, but asked not to use their family names due to social stigmas. They cited societal pressure to look a “certain way” at their wedding and most had discontinued the injections ​soon after.

Novo and Lilly launched their obesity drugs in India last year. The market is forecast to reach 80 billion rupees ($851.79 million) by 2030. Mounjaro sales doubled in the months after launch, making it the ​highest-selling drug in the world’s most populous nation.

Indian drugmakers began selling cheaper versions of Novo’s medicine last month after the patent on semaglutide, its active ingredient, expired, widening access.

The drugs are intended for adults classified as obese, or for ‌those considered overweight ⁠with a weight-related medical condition such as diabetes, hypertension or sleep apnea.

“Mounjaro has been approved by regulators for specific medical indications and is intended to be used only under the supervision of a qualified healthcare professional,” Lilly said in a statement.

The lowest Mounjaro injection pen dose sells for 13,125 rupees ($139.50) per month in India, while the highest dose costs 25,781 rupees.

Novo, which this week cut prices of Ozempic and Wegovy for the second time, is selling the lowest Wegovy dose for 5,660 rupees ($60.90) and the highest for 16,400 rupees a month.
Novo said it discourages any form of self-medication of semaglutide or deviation from the indicated use on label.

CHEAPER ​DRUGS, MISUSE CONCERNS

India could have more than 440 million ​overweight or obese people by 2050, one ⁠of the world’s highest totals, according to The Lancet.

Akshitha, who got married in Hyderabad last year, said the drugs helped her shed 15 kg (33 pounds), taking her weight to 76 kg before the wedding. A family doctor had suggested she try the injections when she worried about her weight, she said.

“There’s so much ​chaos before the wedding, with all the planning and preparation. I knew I would not get time to go to the gym and be on ​a diet. That’s when these ⁠drugs looked like a better option,” she said, adding she might consider using them again after a future pregnancy.

With local drugmakers flooding the market with cheaper weight-loss medicines, India’s drugs regulator has raised concerns about misuse and intensified scrutiny of unauthorized sales and promotion.

“We understand the curiosity, but this cannot be a quick fix,” said Dr. Swati Pradhan, founder of obesity and metabolic wellness clinic Live Light.

Pradhan said she prescribed the injections to only a few soon-to-be ⁠brides if they ​were medically eligible and showed signs of other medical issues, while insisting on lifestyle changes for sustainable results.

For 27-year-old Priya, a ​tech worker from Bengaluru, weight-loss drugs became a way to counter body-shaming from prospective grooms’ families.

“I’ve had men and their families reject my proposal because of my weight. I was told I was fat,” Priya told Reuters.
She initially used Novo’s oral semaglutide, approved ​in India for diabetes, as an off-label treatment and lost more than 12 kg before switching to injectable Mounjaro.

Her search for a groom continues.

More than 1,900 people have been killed since the U.S.-Israeli airstrikes on Iran began on February 28, and more than 21,000 injured, according to the agency – the only humanitarian group working ​across the country. Other estimates are higher.

Maria Martinez told Reuters three of the agency’s own workers had died on ​duty, including one during an airstrike on March 31 that hit a medical clinic in Zanjan province. ⁠She did not attribute blame for the killings.

‘YOU CAN SENSE THE FEAR’

“Our concern is really how the humanitarian needs are escalating ​so rapidly and (over) our ability to bring all the support into the country,” Martinez said.

Hopes for a swift end to the conflict ​faded on Thursday after U.S. President Donald Trump vowed to conduct more aggressive strikes.

Washington has said its Iran strikes are being carried out with precision. Israel’s military has said it takes measures to mitigate harm against civilians during its operations.

Martinez said there were no shortages of emergency stocks for now, but ​the situation would worsen if the fighting continued, especially as the price of supplies went up and their insufficient funding ran low.

“The ​needs are exponentially increasing. Resources are not unlimited,” she said.

She was concerned that people’s fears of bombings would stop them from venturing out to ‌seek aid.

“The ⁠streets are completely empty … You can sense the fear, you can sense the uncertainty in people’s eyes,” she said in a video interview from Tehran.

MORE INTERNATIONAL SUPPORT “IS ESSENTIAL”

The aid group says it has 100,000 responders across the country’s 31 provinces as well as helicopters and rescue dogs, and provides first aid for those injured by airstrikes and support for the displaced.

One IFRC rescue worker called to ​help clear rubble discovered his ​own family were among the ⁠dead buried there. Others take turns sleeping at the IFRC offices to be on standby in the case of bombings, she added.

Work was frequently disrupted and staff were transcribing documents by hand because ​of power and Internet cuts.

“We are in the middle of a meeting and the alarms are ​activated. We need ⁠to evacuate immediately and this happens three, four, six times per day,” she said.

The agency had been unable to import vital supplies from its Dubai warehouse for weeks amid a logistical quagmire exacerbated by Iran’s shutting down of the Strait of Hormuz in retaliation for U.S.-Israeli strikes.

It ⁠now aims ​to ship them overland from Turkey on April 7, IFRC supply chain director ​Cecile Terraz said, but it will take weeks.

The IFRC may have to raise its 40 million Swiss Franc ($50.05 million) emergency appeal even though it is currently only 6% ​funded, Martinez said. “Increasing international support is essential to protect civilians and sustain this emergency response operation.”

Although COVID cases are low nationally, the BA.3.2 strain is gaining traction around the globe. BA.3.2, aka “cicada,” emerged over a year ago and slowly simmered until last fall, when it started ramping up in several countries, including the U.S.

As of Feb. 11, the BA.3.2 variant has been detected in at least 25 states, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said.

What is BA.3.2 Covid variant?

BA.3.2 was first identified in November 2024 in South Africa. It’s a descendent of BA.3, an omicron subvariant that emerged in 2022 and briefly co-circulated with BA.1 and BA.2, the CDC said.

Its ancestor BA.3 fizzled out, but never disappeared, says Pekosz. Two years and dozens of mutations later, BA.3.2 emerged. It further branched into two subvariants, BA.3.2.1 and BA.3.2.2.

Since 2024, BA.3.2 has moved slowly and quietly, overshadowed by dominant variants like Nimbus and XFG — which all descend from BA.2. Last September, BA.3.2 started taking off.

“It was under the radar, replicating, until it started to spread more from person to person,” says Pekosz.

BA.3.2 has 70–75 mutations in its spike protein — that’s a lot, says Pekosz — which set it apart from JN.1 and LP.8.1, the strains targeted by current COVID-19 vaccines.

According to the CDC, BA.3.2 represents a new lineage that’s “genetically distinct” from the family of variants we’ve seen in recent years. “We think it might be able to evade a lot of the immunity already in the population,” says Pekosz.

In laboratory studies, BA.3.2 effectively escaped COVID-19 antibodies due to its spike protein changes, the CDC said.

“What’s interesting, however, is some of these mutations may actually make the virus bind less well to our cells. So yes, our immune system may not recognize it, but it also doesn’t recognize us as well,” Dr. Dana Mazo, an infectious diseases physician at NYU Langone Health, tells TODAY.com.

Where is it spreading?

As of Feb. 11, 2026, BA.3.2 has spread to at least 23 countries, per data from the CDC and the Global Initiative on Sharing All Influenza Data (GISAID) database. So far, the majority of cases are in Denmark, Germany and the Netherlands, per the CDC.

BA.3.2 was first detected in the U.S. in June 2025 in a traveler returning from the Netherlands at the San Francisco International Airport, the CDC said. Since then, it’s been detected in more international travelers, COVID patients and wastewater samples.

Symptoms of the new COVID-19 variant BA.3.2

The symptoms of BA.3.2 are similar to those caused by other variants circulating, the experts note.

According to the CDC, common COVID-19 symptoms in 2026 include:

Cough
Fever or chills
Sore throat
Congestion
Shortness of breath
Loss of smell or taste
Fatigue
Headache
Diarrhea or vomiting

Symptoms can vary depending on the person, but usually go away on their own with supportive care.

Do vaccines protect against the new COVID variant?

BA.3.2 has drawn attention partly because the changes in its spike protein have may affect how well the vaccine works, highlighting the need for possible reformulation, the experts note.

The 2025-2026 COVID vaccines, which target the JN.1 lineage, are effective at protecting against severe disease from current strains.

In lab studies, these vaccines were less effective against BA.3.2, but more research is needed, the CDC said.

“It’s not completely clear how effective the current vaccine will be, but it likely still has some effectiveness,” García-Sastre says.

According to the WHO, current COVID vaccines “are expected to continue providing protection against severe disease.”

Vaccines are typically reformulated in the summer and can protect against multiple strains. “One beauty of this vaccine is that we can update it every year,” says Mazo.

In the meantime, you can still protect yourself and others by testing if you have symptoms, staying home when sick and wearing a mask in high-risk (crowded, indoor) settings.

The Lilly drug, orforglipron, which will be sold under the brand name Foundayo, is a once-daily oral medication that targets the GLP-1 hormone. Patients taking the drug in trials lost 12% to 15% of their body weight.

Lilly said it will begin selling Foundayo on April 6 through its LillyDirect program at a cost of $149 per month for the lowest dose ​for self-pay customers, on par with Novo’s pill. Soon after, it will be available through retail pharmacies and telehealth providers, the Indianapolis-based company ​said.

“As a convenient, once-daily oral pill that delivers meaningful weight loss, this is obesity care designed for the real world,” ⁠said Lilly CEO David Ricks in a statement.

LILLY VS NOVO

The approval, fast-tracked under the Food and Drug Administration’s new voucher program, puts Lilly back in ​direct competition with Danish drugmaker Novo Nordisk.

Novo was first with its injectable GLP-1 medicines, including Ozempic for diabetes and Wegovy for obesity, but Lilly now dominates ​that US. market. Novo also gained the first-to-market advantage in pills, when it launched oral Wegovy in January to strong demand.

Lilly’s pill can be taken without any restrictions and at any time of day, compared with the Wegovy pill, which must be taken first thing in the morning and 30 minutes before any food, water or other medications.

“In the early ​innings of the launch, investors will be following closely to see if Foundayo’s lack of a food effect drives any difference in patient uptake,” BMO ​analyst Evan Seigerman said in a research note.

Shares of Lilly climbed 6%, while U.S.-listed shares of Novo fell slightly after the approval announcement.

PILLS VS INJECTABLES

Most oral Wegovy patients are ‌taking a ⁠GLP-1 for the first time, an indication that the pills can capture a share of the weight-loss market not served by injectables, said Novo Nordisk US. operations executive Jamey Millar.

Millar said oral Wegovy patients have not had issues taking the pill according to instructions and that affordability and side effects are more significant factors for patients when choosing a drug.

Oral weight-loss drugs are not expected to fully replace injectables, which can deliver greater weight loss, but analysts estimate pills ​could capture around 20% of the ​market by 2030.

In a 72-week late-stage ⁠trial, orforglipron helped overweight people lose about 12% of their body weight, with weight loss plateauing for most patients. In a previous 36-week midstage trial, orforglipron was shown to reduce body weight by nearly 15%.

The most commonly reported side effects ​were mild-to-moderate gastrointestinal issues such as nausea and vomiting.

Foundayo’s label comes with a boxed warning – the FDA’s most ​serious label addition – advising ⁠of an increased risk of thyroid C-cell tumors. Novo’s oral and injectable Wegovy carry the same warning.

Lilly’s pill was granted a voucher under the Commissioner’s National Priority voucher program, which aims to fast-track FDA decisions for drugs with critical public health or national security impact.

Lilly received the voucher as part of a deal with the Trump administration ⁠to lower ​the prices of its weight-loss medicines for government programs and cash-paying patients.

FDA Commissioner Marty Makary ​told reporters the Lilly pill review was as thorough as the traditional longer process would have been. “What we’re doing is convening the different people at the agency that review parts of the application,” ​he said.

In a recent statement, the authority stressed that all employees working in food-related businesses must complete mandatory medical examinations and secure an official health certificate before starting work.

Officials highlighted that hiring workers without undergoing final medical tests and approvals constitutes a violation of health regulations. The authority warned that strict legal action may be taken against establishments that fail to comply with these requirements.

The move is part of ongoing efforts to safeguard public health and ensure that food safety standards are maintained across the country.

Food business owners have been urged to adhere strictly to the regulations and ensure that all staff meet the necessary health criteria prior to employment.

Separately, the Ministry of Interior (MoI) announced on Monday an update to the notification mechanism of the national alert system on smart devices, aimed at enhancing efficiency while taking rest periods into account and ensuring timely delivery of warnings. In a press release, the ministry said notifications will coincide with the activation of warning sirens across the country.

Unlike traditional ultrasound machines that rely on expensive piezoelectric crystals, Butterfly’s device uses a ​single silicon chip for whole-body imaging. The AI tool ​delivers an estimate in under two minutes without ⁠requiring users to capture or interpret images or perform fetal ​biometric measurements, the company said.

The model was trained on more ​than 21 million ultrasound images from diverse patient populations and clinical settings, and is designed to provide consistent results for pregnancies between 16 ​and 37 weeks.

The clearance comes as the U.S. Food ​and Drug Administration encourages the use of artificial intelligence in medical devices. ‌The ⁠FDA says on its website that AI and machine learning have the potential to improve healthcare by generating new insights from data produced during care delivery.

Butterfly said the tool ​is integrated into ​its app ⁠and is intended to help clinicians make faster decisions in emergency departments, rural clinics and ​other low-resource settings.

The company said gaps in ​access to ⁠prenatal imaging remain significant, noting that many rural U.S. counties lack hospital obstetric services.

Butterfly also said the tool has already ⁠been ​deployed in Malawi and Uganda, and ​that it plans to expand its use in the U.S. and other international ​markets.

Federal Minister for Health, Syed Mustafa Kamal, presented the written details regarding HIV/AIDS patients during the NA session.

In his formal written reply, the Minister stated that 84,421 individuals living with the disease have been registered under the National AIDS Control Program.

According to the Minister, the majority of these patients are from Pakistan’s most populous provinces, Punjab and Sindh.

He further noted that these patients are receiving free Antiretroviral Therapy (ART) at 98 designated treatment centers nationwide.

The ​company tested the drug, povorcitinib, in patients with ‌moderate to severe hidradenitis suppurativa, a chronic skin disease that causes painful lumps, abscesses and scarring, usually in areas where skin rubs ​together like the armpits or groin.

The new data, ​presented at a medical meeting, showed that after 54 ⁠weeks of treatment, up to 71.4% of patients taking ​the drug achieved at least 50% reduction in abscesses and ​inflamed skin bumps in the trials.

The studies also showed that up to 57% of patients achieved major symptom reduction and up to 29% ​achieved complete clearance of key skin lesions.

Povorcitinib is a ​once-daily pill that works by blocking JAK1, a protein involved in the ‌inflammation ⁠that leads to painful abscesses and nodules.

Treatment options for the condition are limited and are mainly injectable drugs.

There are currently three FDA-approved treatments for the condition: AbbVie’s Humira, Novartis’ Cosentyx and ​UCB’s Bimzelx.

The most ⁠frequent side effects were acne, nasopharyngitis and upper respiratory tract infections, Incyte said.

Hidradenitis suppurativa ​affects about 1% to 4% of people in ​the ⁠United States and has a higher impact on people from racial and ethnic minority groups, according to the U.S. Food ⁠and ​Drug Administration.

Incyte said applications seeking approval ​of povorcitinib are currently under review by the FDA and the European Medicines ​Agency.