Compounding pharmacies will have to stop producing copycats of tirzepatide, the active ingredient in the blockbuster weight loss drugs Mounjaro and Zepbound, in a matter of days. That’s because a federal judge has ruled that compounding pharmacies can’t keep making copies of the drug now that it’s no longer in shortage.

To be a person in the year 2025 is to encounter, in one way or another, the marketing onslaught for compounded GLP-1s—medications containing the same active ingredients as the blockbuster weight-loss drugs but sold at a much lower price.

Consumers who use telehealth or medical spas to get less expensive, compounded weight loss drugs will need to get their medications elsewhere.

The medicines watchdog has agreed the drugs are safe and cost-effective for NHS use. Last year, semaglutide was approved for treating obesity under the brand name Wegovy. It has also been licensed under the brand name Ozempic for treating diabetes in some circumstances,

In this podcast, Motley Fool analyst Karl Thiel joins host Ricky Mulvey to check in on the GLP-1 landscape. They discuss: How weight loss drugs actually work, and how big-name prescriptions differ from each other.