Stalemate over PBS pricing emerges

Growing calls for Novo Nordisk’s Wegovy and Eli Lilly’s Mounjaro to be added to the PBS for weight loss have put the Government under mounting pressure, with Health Minister Mark Butler saying this “revolutionary class of drugs” must be subsidised “at some point”, as negotiations over pricing stall.

Novo Nordisks’ Wegovy, which utilises the same active as the company’s diabetes drug Ozempic, was recommended by the PBAC in November 2025 for a relatively limited listing for weight loss, including adults with a body mass index of 35 or higher and established cardiovascular disease.

In an interview on Channel 7's Sunrise program today, Butler said the “main barrier” to reaching the first weight loss listing for these drugs is price.