Is the Mounjaro price hike the start of a trend?

Editor's Note: This is a corrected story, see correction notice below for full details. Last week, American pharmaceutical giant Eli Lilly noted it is raising the price for Mounjaro—its medication used to treat type 2 diabetes and weight loss—in the U.K., after pressure from U.S. President Donald Trump to lower drug prices in the U.S. and raise them elsewhere. In a press release, the company says that “Lilly supports the administration’s goal of keeping the United States the world’s leading destination for biopharmaceutical research and manufacturing, and the objective of more fairly sharing the costs of breakthrough medical research across developed countries.” Earlier this summer, Trump sent letters to 17 pharmaceutical players—AbbVie, Amgen Inc., AstraZeneca, Boehringer Ingelheim, Bristol Corp. Myers Industries Inc. Squibb, Eli Lilly, EMD Serono, Genentech Inc., Gilead, GSK, Johnson & Johnson, Merck, Novartis AG, Novo Nordisk, Pfizer, Regeneron and Sanofi—telling them to raise drug prices in other countries, enabling them to lower prices in the U.S. The Eli Lilly release goes on to say that, "While we agree that the costs for breakthrough medicines should be more fairly shared across developed countries, we must also address the underlying structural issues in the U.S. that have contributed to high drug prices. The U.S. system is complex and opaque, with multiple cross subsidies, abuse of government programs like 340B, and insurance cost-sharing burdens for patients. This makes the U.S. different from other developed nations, which have a less complicated system and low, or no out-of-pocket costs for patients." In Canada, meanwhile, a spokesperson for Eli Lilly Canada Inc. clarified that "there are no pricing updates to share for Canadian patients." However, recent reporting from the Globe and Mail details that since Mounjaro was first introduced to the Canadian market in 2023, there have been developments regarding formatting. Single-use vials were originally introduced for around $80 wholesale. But in 2025, the Kwikpen format came onto the scene. The Globe and Mail noted that the company raised the prices of the single-dose vials to align with the four-dose Kwikpen format and citing data from Cubic Health, reported that depending on the dosage, the average wholesale price for a Kwikpen can be from $387 to $773.Meanwhile, a number of healthcare stakeholders have spoken up about worries over potential price increases—many of them emphasizing the harm it could have on patients for whom the medication could become less accessible. In an emailed statement, Health Canada says that it “will continue to work with healthcare system partners, including provincial and territorial partners, to actively monitor impacts on pharmaceutical prices and will collaborate, as needed, on potential mitigation measures, including those to address potential disruptions to the supply of health products.” The federal health agency also encourages Canadians to work with their healthcare providers and pharmacy teams to continue to access the medications they need. The Canadian Pharmacists Association (CPhA) says it is “certainly concerned” to see the impacts of U.S. trade and tariff threats on the price of medication in Canada. “We’ve been warning about these potential impacts for months, and while we don’t expect widespread changes to drug prices right away, this could be the start of a troubling pattern,” the CPhA said in an emailed statement, adding that pharmacists often cannot pass drug price increases on to patients, since the price of drugs in Canada are already negotiated—leading to a disproportionate impact on pharmacists. “That’s why we need governments to work with us and the pharmacy sector now to limit the impact and prepare for future challenges. In the meantime, pharmacists will continue doing everything they can to help patients understand their options and manage their care.”In a statement, the Patented Medicine Prices Review Board (PMPRB) says that while it does not comment on individual medicines, it does reaffirm its new guidelines regarding the Administrative Process for Excessive Price Hearing Recommendation, which are set to take effect on Jan. 1, 2026. The Canadian Society of Healthcare-Systems Pharmacy (CSHSP) says that “as pharmacy professionals, we recognize that any rise in medication costs has the potential to affect patient access and continuity of care.” In an emailed statement to Canadian Healthcare Network, the CSHSP says pharmacy teams, when notified of a price change, carefully evaluate the impact on patients and work with care providers to adjust treatment plans accordingly to ensure continuity of care and access. For pharmacists, the CSHSP encourages them to reassure patients that there is no immediate impact to cost or supply, to tell patients not to panic buy and stock up on the medications and engage patients in conversations about treatment costs and be prepared to discuss alternatives. “CSHP continues to work with government and other stakeholders to monitor the potential effects of tariffs and international market changes on Canadian drug supply and pricing. Our priority remains ensuring that patients have reliable, affordable access to the medications they need, without disruption.” Notably, the price tag for another popular diabetes medication is on the move. On Monday, Novo Nordisk announced that if U.S. patients buy Ozempic directly (rather than through an insurer) the price would be halved, coming to US$499. Correction: A previous version of this story stated that a price increase for the drug Mounjaro in Canada had been announced the week prior to publication. This was incorrect and we regret the error.

Is the Mounjaro price hike the start of a trend?

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