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For some customers using a telehealth website to get cheaper versions of obesity drugs, the low prices turned out to be too good to be true. And now they aren't sure what to do after learning that the pharmacy that made their medicine was operating without the right license. NPR pharmaceutical correspondent Sydney Lupkin reports.
SYDNEY LUPKIN, BYLINE: When Laura Franzese's regular doctor wouldn't write her a prescription for an obesity drug to help her lose weight, she decided to try a local medical spa. The spa offered a range of services, including obesity medicines. By the numbers, she was obese and hadn't been able to lose weight on her own. A nurse at the med spa offered her 16 weeks of compounded tirzepatide, which is the active ingredient in Eli Lilly's Zepbound. Compounded drugs aren't generics, but rather they're made by specialized pharmacies which are allowed to essentially make copies during drug shortages.
LAURA FRANZESE: And over those 16 weeks, I lost 20 pounds, and it was life changing that this medicine was giving me something that my body clearly needed.
LUPKIN: But it was expensive, and she soon discovered she could get a better price from a telehealth provider called Zappy Health. She bought a three-month supply of the medicine through Zappy in December for around a thousand dollars. Her supply came from a compounding pharmacy called Ousia Pharmacy, but Zappy uses other pharmacies, too. Eric Bishop, an IT professional in Salt Lake City, Utah, says he wasn't told his order would come from Ousia until after he had paid Zappy.
ERIC BISHOP: Zappy didn't tell me that until I got basically a little thing that said, your medication's going to come from Ousia. But they didn't give me a choice.
LUPKIN: But there was a problem. On December 5, the Florida Department of Public Health filed a complaint against Ousia, which is based in Florida. It said Ousia was compounding without a sterile compounding license, improperly storing medicines that needed to be refrigerated and failing to document drugs it dispensed. Ousia didn't respond to multiple requests for comment for this story. A statement on Zappy's website said it has ceased its relationship with Ousia. Zappy declined to comment for this story. In Utah, Bishop had just gotten nearly $3,000 worth of vials when he heard about the problem with Ousia's license.
BISHOP: I'm all of a sudden, you know, about ready to start taking my medication, and I'm like, I now no longer have any confidence in what I have. And I'm like, I either want my money back, or I want a replacement for what I have because I don't trust what I have.
LUPKIN: On January 31, Ousia voluntarily relinquished the regular pharmacy license it did have. The pharmacy's phone number goes to voicemail, and its website is down. That leaves Franzese and other customers with tough choices. They could throw out their stockpiles or use the medicine anyway and risk that it doesn't work or is contaminated. Scott Brunner, the CEO of the Alliance for Pharmacy Compounding, says not having a sterile compounding license is egregious.
SCOTT BRUNNER: I would not take a drug that has been dispensed to that patient from a pharmacy that has been found to be in violation of its state license law.
LUPKIN: He says this situation is unfortunate for the patients involved, but it's an example of the regulatory system working the way it's supposed to. Ousia Pharmacy wasn't a member of his trade group. The National Association of Boards of Pharmacies say it's hard to know how many online retailers are offering compounded obesity drugs that are made without the proper license or registration. Still, Betty Jones, who works on accreditation and inspection at the association, says consumers can be on the lookout for red flags. For instance, you should always know what pharmacy is filling your prescription, and they're required to provide counseling.
BETTY JONES: If they're not providing you that offer of patient counseling or you're calling into that pharmacy, and they don't allow you to, you know, be progressed to a pharmacist so that way you can ask questions, that would be something that I would call a red flag.
LUPKIN: She says prices that are too low and pharmacies that don't ask for a prescription should also raise alarm bells. Now, Zappy customers are trying to get their money back. Bishop, the Zappy customer in Utah, runs a Facebook group of 500 people to help them with credit card disputes after they say Zappy refused to offer refunds.
BISHOP: We're just a community just kind of helping each other.
LUPKIN: Zappy is still advertising to customers, but Bishop isn't buying from them again. He's back on compounded tirzepatide from his local brick-and-mortar pharmacy.
Sydney Lupkin, NPR News. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
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