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Novo Nordisk Sues Eli Lilly Over Advertising for Weight-Loss Drugs
Novo Nordisk filed a lawsuit Tuesday in U.S. District Court in New Jersey alleging Eli Lilly ran false and misleading ads for its GLP-1 medicines. The complaint targets comparisons that pit higher doses of Lilly drugs against lower doses of Novo Nordisk products.
Jul 21, 9:47 AM·1m read11 sources
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Novo Nordisk sued Eli Lilly on Tuesday in U.S. District Court in New Jersey over advertising that compared the highest doses of Mounjaro and Zepbound against lower doses of Ozempic and Wegovy, even after the FDA approved a 7.2-milligram dose of Wegovy in March 2026.
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The complaint states that Lilly intentionally selected outdated clinical trial data while omitting newer, higher-dose versions of Wegovy. One Lilly advertisement running since late April claims patients on Zepbound lost an average of 50 pounds versus 33 pounds on the 2.
A separate trial showed average weight loss of 47 pounds on the higher Wegovy dose.
The advertising campaigns have aired nationally across major broadcast and cable networks and on TikTok and Facebook. Novo Nordisk sent Lilly a formal cease-and-desist request after the higher Wegovy dose received approval but received no response. Novo Nordisk is seeking a permanent injunction requiring Eli Lilly to pull the ads across all platforms and to conduct corrective advertising.
The company stated it will file a formal motion for a preliminary injunction in the coming days if Lilly does not voluntarily withdraw the campaigns.
"Healthcare companies have a responsibility to keep their public claims accurate and current — ineffective, fine-print disclaimers do not fix the misleading impression created by major national campaigns," said John Kuckelman, Novo Nordisk senior vice president and group general counsel.
Eli Lilly defended the ads in a statement, citing the Surmount-5 trial as the only direct head-to-head randomized clinical trial comparing tirzepatide and semaglutide. "Rather than compete on the merits of its products, Novo is asking a court to stop Lilly from communicating the results of that trial," the statement said.
