South Africa’s High Court has granted Novo Nordisk an interim interdict barring a local pharmacy group from manufacturing and selling compounded weight-loss medicines containing semaglutide, in a ruling that shows tightening scrutiny of unregistered drugs.
The Gauteng Division of the High Court in Pretoria ruled on Monday that iDexis and its director must immediately stop compounding, supplying and marketing semaglutide-based products pending the outcome of regulatory processes and potential review proceedings.
Novo Nordisk, the Danish drugmaker behind blockbuster brands Ozempic and Wegovy, had argued that iDexis was unlawfully selling unregistered semaglutide medicines. Furthermore, it was competing in the lucrative weight-loss market without complying with South Africa’s Medicines Act.
- South Africa's High Court granted Novo Nordisk an interim interdict against a local pharmacy group, iDexis.
- iDexis is barred from manufacturing, selling, and marketing compounded weight-loss medicines containing semaglutide.
- The ruling applies pending regulatory review and possible further legal proceedings.
- Novo Nordisk claimed iDexis was unlawfully selling unregistered semaglutide drugs, violating South African law.
- The decision highlights increasing regulatory scrutiny of unregistered weight-loss medications in South Africa.
Novo Nordisk, the
