Mass Torts to Watch: Lawsuits Against Weight Loss Drug, Ozempic

In the past few years, Ozempic, a prescription drug for the treatment of Type-2 diabetes, has become a household name. Thanks, in part, to its namedropping by celebrities and social media influencers, it has become one of the first words associated with rapid weight loss. As weight loss became a widely known side effect of the drug, Ozempic and other similar medications began to skyrocket in popularity due to these off-label use. Since 2020, Ozempic experienced a 300% increase in prescriptions, with over 9 million prescriptions written in the last three months of 2022 alone. Its side effects, however, are not always desirable. Over the past year, there have been reports of adverse gastrointestinal effects from the medication. Last summer,  the first lawsuit was filed against the manufacturers of Ozempic and Mounjaro, another similar medication. Since then, approximately 55 lawsuits are pending against the Ozempic, which have recently been consolidated in a multi-district litigation. If the current lawsuits are any indication, especially in light of the drug’s massive popularity, there is a possibility that the Ozempic litigation will become a huge mass tort action in the upcoming years.

The History of Ozempic

Ozempic, which is manufactured by Novo Nordisk and known by its generic name, semaglutide, is a weekly injectable drug used to manage blood sugar levels in adults with type-2 diabetes as well as lower risks of heart attack and stroke for diabetics. Ozempic belongs to a class of drugs called glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonists (GLP-1 RAs) and lowers blood sugar by helping the pancreas produce more insulin. Ozempic was approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration in 2017 for its use in adults with type-2 diabetes. Ozempic is not approved by the FDA for weight loss, although weight loss is a common side effect, as the drug slows digestion and mimics a naturally occurring hormone that tells your brain it is full.  As a result, Ozempic surged in popularity as an off label weight loss drug, with data indicating an increase in users that were not diagnosed with diabetes. Celebrity use and promotion of the drug also catapulted Ozempic into widespread notoriety, which caused a drug shortage for patients who actually rely on it for diabetes.

There are other GLP-1 drugs on the market, including Wegovy, which is specifically approved for weight loss management and also manufactured by Novo Nordisk, and Mounjaro, that uses another hormone, glucose-dependent insulinotropic polypeptide (GIP) to increase its efficacy (though not approved for weight loss). Novo Nordisk’s diabetes and weight loss products now comprise 52% of the market, helping the company reach over $500 billion market value.

The FDA has received over 16,000 reports of adverse events from Ozempic patients, 7,075 of which were flagged as serious cases and 187 of which resulted in death. Patients reported a number of other gastric side effects, including gastroparesis and stomach paralysis, a disorder also referred to as gastric emptying, which slows or stops the movement of food from the stomach to the intestines. Recent studies have also indicated that the drug may increase the risk of gallbladder and biliary diseases. Despite these reports, Ozempic’s popularity has continued to soar, so much so that it was added to the FDA’s drug shortage list in 2023.

The Lawsuits

In the first lawsuit filed in federal against the manufacturers of Ozempic and Mounjaro, a Louisiana woman, the plaintiff, Jaclyn Bjorklund (age 44), claimed that the companies failed to sufficiently warn her about the risk of severe gastrointestinal events. The plaintiff was using Ozempic for over a year and then began using Mounjaro. According to the complaint, she suffered from severe gastrointestinal events such as severe vomiting which caused the loss of teeth, stomach pain, and gastrointestinal burning, requiring several hospitalizations and emergency room visits.

The plaintiff conceded that the companies acknowledged that gastrointestinal events are well-known side effects of these drugs, but asserts that the severity of the effects was downplayed, and that both companies failed to warn about the risk of gastroparesis or gastroenteritis. The complaint cites Ozempic’s marketing strategies for off-label weight loss use, which included advertisements of adults losing “on average up to 12 pounds” and notes that Novo Nordisk spent approximately $11,000,000 to promote the medication to physicians. According to the complaint, Ozempic prescriptions reached an all-time high in February 2023, with one weeks’ worth totaling 373,000. The complaint alleged that manufacturers utilized similar marketing campaigns for Mounjaro, with news articles touting it as potentially “even more powerful” than Ozempic even though it had not be designated by the FDA for weight loss.

Multi-District Litigation

Since last year’s lawsuit, there has been an additional 55 lawsuits filed against Novo Nordisk and Eli Lilly (Mounjaro’s manufacturer) alleging similar claims of gastroparesis and other gastric injuries. Earlier this month, the U.S. Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation consolidated the 55 cases into the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, where 13 of the other cases were pending.  The Panel found that the drugs at issue were sufficiently similar to be consolidated with each other into one MDL. With the lawsuits now consolidated into a multi-district litigation, the court will be able to issue rulings that apply to all the cases.

Paul Pennock of Morgan & Morgan, who has filed at least nine of the lawsuits and moved to establish the MDL, expressed his satisfaction with the Panel’s consolidation, estimating that up to 10,000 cases will ultimately be filed in this MDL.

The Future of Ozempic

In addition to the adverse events of gastric injuries, the Journal of American Medical Association has discovered a link between Ozempic and gallbladder disease. There is also new data from the European Medicines Agency that suggests a link between these drugs and suicidal ideation, after receiving 150 reports from patients.

As more and more data is collected and studies conducted, it is likely that the allegations against Ozempic’s adverse side effects will continue to grow.