Novo Launches $25 Wegovy Pill (Coffee Not Included), Judge Blocks Half-Baked 340B Rebate Pilot, and CMS Fixes GLP-1 Access for Everyone Except Weight Loss Patients

Hey all,

Happy New Year and Happy Tuesday! Since most news is released Monday through Thursday, we’re moving the ZorroRX Rundown to a publishing schedule of Tuesday through Friday for 2026.

Monday was a big news day. Between Novo Nordisk demanding we forgo morning coffee to make their new pill work and CMS debuting a GLP-1 payment model that legally cannot cover weight loss drugs without congressional approval, the healthcare industry is mastering the art of the "solution" that feels more like a cruel prank. It is perhaps a small mercy that a federal judge intervened to stop the government’s half-baked 340B rebate pilot, reminding regulators that "flying the plane while building it" is not always an agile strategy and can be more of a blueprint for crashing safety-net hospitals. We seem to have entered an era where the standard operating procedure is to announce the headline first, inflict the logistical chaos second, and hope the lawyers figure it out before the money runs out.

Enjoy the rundown!

Jacob Brody (Co-Founder & CEO, ZorroRX)

(Endpoints News) Novo Nordisk Launches Wegovy Pill

Novo Nordisk has officially rolled out its oral Wegovy formulation in the US, pricing the daily pill at just $25 per month for eligible insured patients and starting at $149 for those paying out of pocket. The medication mimics the cardiovascular and weight-loss benefits of the injectable version and is now available through major retail and telehealth channels. While this launch puts the pressure on Eli Lilly to catch up, they can take comfort in the fact that their upcoming pill won't force patients to endure the morning torture of staring longingly at their coffee machine for 30 minutes without a drop of water just to make the drug work. Full Article

(Modern Healthcare) Judge Pauses 340B Drug Rebates Pilot Program..

A federal judge has issued a preliminary injunction to block the implementation of the 340B drug rebates pilot program, ruling that the initiative likely violates the Administrative Procedure Act by attempting to launch without proper regulatory construction. The court sided with the American Hospital Association, noting that regulators were essentially trying to "fly the plane before they build it," which would cause irreparable injury to providers relying on the 30-year-old discount program. This was a decision that absolutely had to be made, unless the government’s plan was to watch safety-net hospitals immediately go out of business or drastically slash services while regulators figured out how to run their own unfinished experiment. Full Article

(Fierce Healthcare) CMS Launches Payment Model to Expand GLP-1 Access

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) has announced the voluntary BALANCE payment model, designed to negotiate lower prices and standardize coverage terms for GLP-1 therapies across Medicare Part D and Medicaid. Set to phase in starting May 2026, the initiative aims to reduce patient costs and integrate lifestyle supports to improve outcomes for metabolic conditions. While this model promises significant relief for individuals with diabetes and other non-obesity indications currently on-label, it will ultimately have little effect on the massive and growing population utilizing GLP-1s for weight loss until Congress passes legislation authorizing Medicare to cover anti-obesity medications. Full Article