For Release: February 19, 2025
Washington, D.C. – The National Association of Attorneys General (NAAG) sent a letter on behalf of a bipartisan coalition of 38 state and territory attorneys general requesting that the Food and Drug Administration take swift action against bad actors who are endangering consumers with counterfeit forms of the weight loss and diabetes drugs Mounjaro, Zepbound, Ozempic, and Wegovy (GLP-1 drugs).
The letter states that “online retailers are illegally selling the active ingredients of GLP-1 drugs directly to consumers, without a prescription. These retailers claim that the active ingredients they sell are ’for research purposes only’ or ’not for human consumption.’ 1 In reality, these companies advertise directly to consumers on social media, claiming that their products are an easier and more affordable way to obtain GLP-1 drugs. 2 Much like with counterfeit versions, these active ingredients come from unregulated, undisclosed sources and pose risks of contamination and inclusion of foreign substances.” 3
The letter declares that the Food and Drug Administration has the expertise and resources to stop the bad conduct and deceptive practices by counterfeit drug manufacturers and that they should increase enforcement actions against compounding pharmacies illegally participating in this market. It also encourages the FDA to partner with state pharmacy boards to ensure compounded GLP-1 drugs are produced safely and in sanitary environments.
The following jurisdictions, co-led by South Carolina, Colorado, Illinois, and Tennessee joined today’s letter:
Alaska, Arkansas, California, Connecticut, Delaware, District of Columbia, Georgia, Hawaii, Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Nevada, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Utah, Vermont, Virgin Islands, Virginia, West Virginia, and Wisconsin.
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The National Association of Attorneys General (NAAG) is the nonpartisan national forum for America’s attorneys general and their staff. NAAG provides a community for members to collaboratively address issues important to their work and resources to support attorneys general in protecting the rule of law and the United States Constitution.
Endnotes
- See Jordyn Belcourt et al., Bypassing Prescribers and Pharmacists: Online Purchasing of Semaglutide and Tirzepatide “For Research Purposes,” Annals of Pharmacotherapy, p.1 (2024). [↩]
- See https://www.wsj.com/health/healthcare/ozempic-mounjaro-no-prescription-websites-726b3928 [↩]
- https://www.nbcnews.com/health/health-news/ozempic-underworld-black-market-obesity-drugs-rcna174680 [↩]