Obesity Drugs Delivered in 30 Minutes: Prices in China One-Third of Those in Korea

[Anchor]

With the obesity population in China surging, it is said that people can now order weight-loss drugs as easily as shopping online. These drugs are reportedly delivered in just 30 minutes, and the prices are about one-third of those in Korea.

Beijing correspondent Choi Go-un tried the service herself.

[Reporter]

This is a popular shopping app in China.

I will now attempt to purchase an injectable weight-loss drug through this app.

As soon as I search for the active ingredient of the weight-loss injection, numerous sellers appear.

Once I select the desired dosage, I am connected to an online consultation, and an electronic prescription is issued in just one minute.

Exactly 30 minutes after placing the order, a delivery person arrived with a cooler box.

[Delivery person for the Chinese shopping app: (Are you from 00? Does this need to be refrigerated?) If you are not using it right now, it should be kept refrigerated.]

After the delivery is complete, a pharmacist calls to provide detailed instructions, ranging from how to use the injection to dietary advice.

[Pharmacist linked to the Chinese shopping app: To prevent side effects, do not increase the dosage too early. To lose weight without losing muscle mass, you must consume enough protein. Eat two to three eggs every day.]

The authenticity of the product can be easily verified via a barcode.

It displays a mark indicating that the medication is a verified, genuine product.

It also shows information that I am the only person to have checked this specific barcode.

The total cost, including the prescription, medication price, and delivery fee, was 459 yuan.

That is about 100,000 won in Korean currency, which is one-third the price of the same dosage in Korea.

It is even cheaper if you visit a pharmacy in person.

[Phone call with a pharmacy selling weight-loss drugs: What dosage do you need? (10mg.) It is 324.1 yuan (approximately 74,000 won).]

Novo Nordisk, the manufacturer of Wegovy, and Eli Lilly, the maker of Mounjaro—which are competing for the top market share—have significantly lowered their prices to maintain their presence in China.

This is because the patent for Wegovy in China has expired, and Chinese pharmaceutical companies are rushing to launch generic versions.

It is projected that by 2030, the proportion of the adult population in China that is overweight or obese will exceed 70%. As a result, price competition among pharmaceutical companies to capture the world's largest obesity market is expected to intensify further.

Reported by Choi Deok-hyun | Video edited by Lee Seung-yeol
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.