The U.S. Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services has named Novo Nordisk’s Wegovy, Ozempic and Rybelsus as part of the second round of the IRA drug price negotiation program, even as the pharma challenges the program.

The U.S. government said on Wednesday it will consider opportunities to "bring greater transparency" for the Medicare drug price negotiation program under President Donald Trump's administration. The price negotiation process was established under former President Joe Biden's signature Inflation Reduction Act in 2022.

Just how much Medicare price negotiations will negatively impact Novo Nordisk, though, depends on what the final negotiated prices for Ozempic, Wegovy, and Rybelsus will be. In Medicare's negotiations for 2026, the new prices achieved an average of 22% savings.

Novo Nordisk's blockbuster diabetes drug Ozempic and weight-loss treatment Wegovy are among the 15 drugs targeted for Medicare price negotiations for 2027, the U.S. government said on Friday, part of a law pharmaceutical companies have pledged to revisit with the Trump administration.

The hugely popular medications Ozempic and Wegovy​, used for diabetes and weight loss, will be included in the next round of talks to negotiate lower Medicare drug prices.

In other news, Novo Nordisk announced the results from its phase 3b STEP UP semaglutide trial today. Specifically, the company said semaglutide 7.2 milligram (mg) injections over a 72-week period resulted in an average weight loss of 20.7%, better than the 17.5% weight loss achieved in a prior trial of semaglutide 2.4 mg injections.

GLP-1 weight loss drugs, Ozempic and Wegovy, will be targeted in the next round of Medicare price negotiations in 2027, along with 13 other medications. Seana Smith and Brad Smith break down the details on Morning Brief.

The Biden administration released another list of prescriptions drugs that would be subject to price controls. The price controls for the selected drugs will become effective in 2027.

The new treatment targets gut hormone GLP-1 but also mimics amylin, a hormone released by the pancreas that suppresses hunger.

Medicare released its next target list of 15 drugs to negotiate prices of, including Novo Nordisk's blockbuster GLP-1 drugs.