--- title: "A Side Effect of Trump’s Tariffs: Making Ozempic Way More Expensive" description: "President Donald Trump's new European tariffs may spell bad news for Novo Nordisk, maker of Ozempic and Wegovy." date: "2025-08-01" modified: "2025-08-01" authors: - name: "Noor Al-Sibai" job_title: "Senior Staff Writer" link: "https://futurism.com/authors/nooralsibai" url: "https://futurism.com/trumps-tariffs-ozempic-novo-nordisk" categories: - "Health & Medicine" - "Medical" - "RX and Medicine" tags: - "donald trump" - "novo nordisk" - "ozempic" - "tariffs" --- # A Side Effect of Trump’s Tariffs: Making Ozempic Way More Expensive ![President Donald Trump's new European tariffs may spell bad news for Novo Nordisk, maker of Ozempic and Wegovy.]() *\Image: Roberto Pfeil / picture alliance via Getty / Futurism\* President Donald Trump's new European tariffs may spell bad news for Novo Nordisk, maker of Ozempic and Wegovy. As [*Axios* reports](), the 15 percent tariffs he's levying on goods imported into the United States from the European Union are likely to drive up already-expensive drug prices for the [blockbuster weight loss jabs](), which can already [cost more than $1,300]() per month's supply without insurance. Slated to [go into effect on August 7](), this new agreement doesn't just target pharmaceuticals. Still, in scary letters [sent to drugmakers]() on both sides of the pond, the American president also threatened to levy higher taxes on "freeloading" pharma companies if they don't proactively cut a deal with the White House to lower their drug prices. With that 60-day deadline giving Novo time to bend the knee, it will be a few months before we know how much more expensive its popular injectables might become. Still, the Ozempic manufacturer's stock has already suffered from the tariff news — and with its [months-long]() downward value trajectory, the company can't really afford to lose any more money. The Danish drugmaker's stock fell below $50 per share in the wake of the EU trade deal announcement earlier in the week. As [*Reuters* notes](), Novo is now ever closer to erasing the gains it got from Wegovy, the weight loss-specific version of the drug, that saw share prices soar up to nearly $150 per share last summer. While the new EU tariffs and the threat of more to come are already hurting Novo's bottom line, the long-running American pharma company Eli Lilly, which makes competitor injectables Mounjaro and Zepbound, is faring much better despite also being [targeted by Trump](). Though it experienced a small share value dropoff in the wake of the news, reflecting the financial anxiety of the tariff news across industries, Lilly is still beating out Novo in the court of public opinion thanks to headlines about its reportedly [strong second-quarter earnings]() and a new study suggesting [Mounjaro may have protective heart health benefits](). Though both companies are more than 100 years old and hold diverse medication portfolios outside of their buzzy weight loss jabs, Lilly seems far more likely to weather this latest financial storm on the sheer credential of being American in a protectionist economy. Despite Ozempic having become a Xerox-style catch-all for GLP-1s writ large, Novo nevertheless looks poised to take the brunt of [Trump's foolhardy tariffs](). **More on Ozempic's finances:** [*Something Comically Bad Just Happened to the Inventor of Ozempic*]() ## Author At Futurism, I've often been drawn to unpacking the narratives that underlie technological, scientific and medical progress, with a special interest in areas of conflict and ambiguity that end up setting agendas and steering the fates of both elites and the hoi polloi. I'm a committed generalist, but I often find myself returning to work involving NASA and the private space sector, the effects of AI on media and society, and the mechanics of the pharmaceutical industry, with a specific focus on the spread of GLP-1 drugs like Ozempic and Wegovy. Prior to Futurism, I worked for publications ranging from Media Matters and Truthdig to Raw Story and Bustle. I'm also the author of "Myspace Scene Queens," a 2024 title in Instar Books' acclaimed "Remember the Internet" series. My work at Futurism has been cited by outlets including the New Yorker, Slate, Nieman Lab, the Verge, the MIT Technology Review, the Sunday Times, and the Daily Beast. I grew up in North Carolina, attended the University of North Carolina at Asheville, and now live in Brooklyn, New York. In my free time, I'm an avid reader and music fan; you can probably find me at a local poetry reading, concert, underground rave, or DJ set. I'm the proud parent of an ineffable orange cat named Mee-Mow. ### Author social links [Bluesky]()