Have you been prescribed the drugs Ozempic, Wegovy, or Mounjaro? Did you develop life-altering side effects as a result? If so, you could be entitled to substantial compensation for what you’ve suffered through an Ozempic lawsuit.
More and more patients are alleging that the companies that produced these pharmaceuticals failed to warn them of the severity of their side effects, which include stomach paralysis, pancreatitis, and cancer. At Hach & Rose, LLP, we take these allegations seriously. We believe that everyone has a right to know the risks involved with the medications they’re prescribed – and when massive corporations lie about those risks, we want to hold them accountable.
Our Ozempic lawsuit attorneys have recovered half a billion dollars in compensation through our tenacity, our resources, and our commitment to our clients. Let us put these qualities to work for you. Contact us today by calling (212) 779-0057and tell us your story during a free consultation with an Ozempic lawsuit lawyer.
Contact Hach & Rose Today for a Free Consultation
- Contact Hach & Rose Today for a Free Consultation
- What Are Ozempic, Mounjaro, and Wegovy?
- Quick Facts About Ozempic
- What Are the Side Effects of Taking Ozempic and Mounjaro?
- Who Can File an Ozempic Lawsuit?
- What Compensation Can I Recover in an Ozempic Case?
- How Can an Ozempic Lawyer Help Me?
- Ready to Get Started? Contact Hach & Rose, LLP Today
- Get In Touch With An Experienced Ozempic Lawsuit Lawyer
What Are Ozempic, Mounjaro, and Wegovy?
Ozempic and Mounjaro are similar drugs originally developed and prescribed to treat Type 2 diabetes but have since become popular because of their weight-loss potential. Ozempic is a trade name for semaglutide, a glucagon-like peptide 1 (GLP-1) receptor agonist that increases both insulin and insulin sensitivity, helping control the body’s blood sugar levels. Mounjaro is a weight loss drug called tirzepatide which, like Ozempic, targets the GLP-1 hormone. Unlike Ozempic, it also targets glucose-dependent insulinotropic polypeptide (GIP). In other words, this newer generation of drug is similar to its earlier competitor but with an additional compound added to increase its effectiveness.
While Ozempic and Mounjaro are effective treatments of Type 2 diabetes – a condition that affects about 1 in 10 Americans, according to the CDC – their sudden ubiquity has more to do with an unrelated off-label use. All three drugs slow the digestive system, meaning that patients who take them feel fuller, longer. And because patients who feel fuller for longer also feel less of an urge to eat, they wind up losing weight.
The success of this off-label application of Ozempic led its producer to create Wegovy, a trade name for semaglutide approved by the FDA specifically for use in weight management.
All three drugs are administered weekly by a shot.
The Ozempic manufacturer Novo Nordisk, a Danish company, also produces Wegovy, while Indianapolis-headquartered Eli Lilly and Company produces Mounjaro.
Quick Facts About Ozempic
The following information gives a quick overview of Ozempic and why it is such a hot topic—the good and the bad, including its popularity:
Ozempic’s Popularity
- Ozempic is extremely popular. Thanks to social media, celebrity influence, mass marketing campaigns, and hot gossip, the drug has gained attention, as very few have before it.
- Ozempic is easily the most popular GLP-1 receptor agonist (GLP-1 RA) on the market, a rapidly growing class of medications for weight management and type 2 diabetes.
- Around 7% of US adults currently use Ozempic or another GLP-1 medication for weight loss, and an additional 9% intend to try it.
- U.S. healthcare providers wrote more than 9,000,000 prescriptions for Ozempic, Wegovy, Mounjaro, and similar medications during just the last three months of 2022 (and if we had data for 2023 and 2024, it would likely be much higher).
- Prescription volumes for these drugs increased by 300% between early 2020 and the end of 2023.
- Ozempic accounted for more than 65% of total prescriptions written.
- Ozempic has been featured in more than 30,000 news outlets worldwide.
- Ozempic generated over $6 Billion in sales in the US in 2022.
- It is estimated that Ozempic will have made $12.5 billion in sales in 2023, and it’s estimated it will reach $17 billion by 2029.
- And finally, interest in Ozempic hasn’t even reached its peak, according to Google Trends, where the peak of the line graph shows the most interest in the search term “Ozempic”.
Ozempic Facts
- Ozempic, manufactured by Novo Nordisk, was approved for use in the US in 2017.
- Initially, Ozempic was for the treatment of type 2 diabetes, but its potential as a weight loss medication soon gave it a whole new market.
- The group of medicines known as GLP-1, in addition to Ozempic, also includes Wegovy, Mounjaro, Trulicity, and Zepbound.
- Ozempic is a brand name for the drug semaglutide.
- Currently, there’s no generic version available in the US since medications benefit from a 20-year patent in the US, meaning there will not be generics until 2037.
- Ozempic is FDA-approved for managing type 2 diabetes in adults and children over the age of 9.
- It has also been approved for off-label use for chronic weight management in adults with a body mass index (BMI) of 27-30 or higher, depending on health conditions.
- Many people do not know that Ozempic is a once-weekly injectable medication, not a pill.
- Ozempic can be a very expensive medication, costing several thousand dollars per year without insurance coverage.
Ozempic Lawsuit Filed Over Stomach Paralysis and Other Serious Gastrointestinal Injuries
- Individuals have filed Ozempic lawsuits for causing a multitude of severe side effects (more information about side effects can be found in the next section).
- The main reason for the lawsuits against Ozempic is that the drug can cause a serious condition called gastroparesis.
- This condition weakens the nerves and muscles in the stomach wall, hindering its ability to move food to the small intestine, which can lead to nausea, vomiting, abdominal bloating, pain, dehydration, and malnutrition, among others, some of which can be server enough to cause life-threatening or life-altering conditions.
- The Ozempic lawsuits allege that the manufacturer, Novo Nordisk, either didn’t adequately warn people about the risk of gastroparesis or downplayed its potential severity.
- By not being fully informed of the potential risks, patients who used Ozempic did not have the full picture and, therefore could not give true informed consent.
- The Ozempic litigation from around the country have been consolidated into an multidistrict litigation (MDL) in the United States District Court Eastern District of Pennsylvania. MDLs streamline the beginning of the trials, but individual cases will be heard separately on their own merits.
What Are the Side Effects of Taking Ozempic and Mounjaro?
According to a report about the potential dangers of Ozempic and Mounjaro published by CBS News, the most common side effects associated with the diabetes drugs are nearly all gastrointestinal. They include the following:
- Nausea
- Abdominal pain
- Constipation
- Diarrhea
A Mayo Clinic endocrinologist quoted in the article said that while many of these relatively minor side effects lessen over time, that is not the case for all patients. She said that roughly 10 percent of people who take these drugs must stop treatment because the complications become so severe. Moreover, the constant pain and discomfort caused by these physical side effects can lead to psychological conditions, including:
- Anxiety
- Shame
- Stress
- Depression
- Feelings of isolation
However serious health complications of these conditions can be, they are far from the most severe. These include the following:
- Changes in vision
- Hypoglycemia
- Pancreatitis
- Gallbladder issues
- Kidney failure
- Cancer
- Gastroparesis
- Blood clots
It is the risk of developing the last of these side effects that patients allege drug makers Novo Nordisk and Eli Lilly and Co. failed to adequately warn them of. Gastroparesis—a stomach paralysis also known as delayed gastric emptying—effectively prevents stomach contents from emptying into the small intestine, even when no blockage prevents it. Sufferers report severe pain and vomiting.
Who Can File an Ozempic Lawsuit?
More and more people who have suffered severe side effects related to Ozempic, Mounjaro, and Wegovy are considering legal action against the companies that put these dangerous products onto the market. They argue that Novo Nordisk and Eli Lilly and Co. failed to warn patients about the possibility of life-altering side effects.
You could be entitled to take legal action against these companies if you were prescribed any of these drugs, suffered gastroparesis or another serious side effect, and were not adequately warned of the risk.
What Compensation Can I Recover in an Ozempic Case?
If you became sick after taking Ozempic, Wegovy, or Mounjaro, an experienced Ozempic attorney can help you seek compensation for the following losses:
- Medical Expenses – You likely incurred medical costs seeking treatment for the side effects you suffered. If so, you have the right to seek compensation for all your past, present, and anticipated future medical bills related to this care. This includes hospital stays, surgeries, physical and psychological therapy, diagnostic tests, and any other treatments related to the adverse effects of the drug.
- Lost Wages and Lost Earning Capacity – Some of the side effects of these dangerous drugs are severe enough that they may have kept you from working or advancing your career. You deserve compensation for the income you’ve missed out on. If your ability to earn money in the future is affected, you can also claim damages for that potential loss.
- Long-term Care Costs – You could also be entitled to compensation for any long-term assistance you now require because of Ozempic, Wegovy, or Mounjaro side effects. These might include in-home care or home modifications.
- Pain and Suffering – You should not have to endure physical pain and emotional distress of severe gastrointestinal discomfort without compensation. You can claim damages that reflect the physical and psychological pain caused by the drug.
- Loss of Consortium – The side effects of these unsafe drugs may have strained your relationship with your spouse or partner. In that case, you can claim damages for this loss of intimacy and companionship.
- Loss of Life Enjoyment – The side effects of semaglutide and tirzepatide likely affected your ability to take part in the activities you enjoy, spend meaningful time with friends and loved ones, and simply enjoy life to its fullest. You deserve to be compensated for the intangible things you lost because a pharmaceutical giant failed to warn you of its product’s potential side effects.
How Can an Ozempic Lawyer Help Me?
While you could be entitled to substantial compensation for what you’ve suffered, getting a massive corporation with a high-powered legal team to hand it over is another matter altogether. Instead of hoping that Novo Nordisk or Eli Lilly will do the right thing or trying to pursue your Ozempic MDL claim alone, get legal help of your own. An experienced plaintiffs lawyer can:
- Evaluate your case during a free consultation. They’ll determine the strength of your case, potential damages, and the viability of pursuing legal action.
- Gather evidence to substantiate your claim. Your lawyer will meticulously compile evidence, which may include medical records, expert testimonies, and any available research linking Ozempic to adverse health outcomes.
- Calculating your compensable losses. Experienced personal injury attorneys know how to properly value claims and pursue every cent of compensation. With a good defective drug lawyer on your side, you know you aren’t leaving money on the table.
- File paperwork and pursue your claim expeditiously. Personal injury law is complicated, especially when defective products are involved. There are tight deadlines and high expectations that must be met. Rather than try to meet them on your own, your lawyer can do the heavy lifting for you, sending demand letters, filing complaints with court, and pursuing litigation before the statute of limitations sunsets your claim.
- Negotiate for a fair settlement. The only thing that big companies hate more than paying settlements is losing at trial and having to pay court fees and legal bills, too. Your attorney can sit down with the opposing attorneys and negotiate for a settlement that fairly compensates you for the harm they cost you. And if the other side won’t play ball, your attorney will see them in court.
- Taking your case to trial. If the pharmaceutical companies refuse to offer a reasonable settlement, going to court may be your best chance at getting compensation. An experienced trial lawyer isn’t afraid to battle it out in front of a judge and jury. They will start preparing your case for court immediately. Not only will they be ready should the drug company deny liability, but a rock-solid case serves as a powerful negotiating tool during settlement talks.
Remember, the sooner you get in touch with an experienced Ozempic lawsuit lawyer, the more they can do on your behalf. Time is of the essence, so get started on your case right away.
Ready to Get Started? Contact Hach & Rose, LLP Today
Were you or a loved one prescribed Ozempic, Wegovy, or Mounjaro, only to suffer severe side effects as a result? If so, the companies that produced and marketed these drugs could owe you compensation for the harm you suffered because of their failure to adequately warn you of the danger they placed you in.
At Hach & Rose, LLP, we are proud to have recovered over one billion dollars on behalf of injured clients like you, and we are eager to get to work on your case. Contact our mass tort litigation lawyers today, and we’ll review your options for free. You can reach us online or by calling (646) 971-1806.
Get In Touch With An Experienced Ozempic Lawsuit Lawyer