Semaglutide scam warning

Sarah Simpkins A GP is warning her col-	despite diet and exercise interventions .	“ My GP recommended this compounding pharma-	home address about two weeks later in a small vial	“ There was no … evidence of cold chain transport at all ;
leagues to be careful when	As a result , she had been	cist that some of his other	wrapped in cotton wool ,	it looked like they put some
prescribing compounded	using semaglutide for two	patients had been happy	alongside syringes and	ice packs in there , but by the
semaglutide , saying both	years , but on and off due to	with .”	instructions on how to	time I received it , it was all at
she and her prescribing	supply issues .	Her GP then wrote a pre-	inject the drug .	room temperature .”
doctor appear to have been	“ I ’ d been without the	scription for compounded	But there was one	There was also no indica-
taken in by a scam .	injection for probably six	semaglutide and faxed it to	problem .	tion of how far the parcel had
From Far North Queens-	months and I was still	the supplier .	“ It ’ s supposed to be	travelled , and the pharmacy
land , she had been taking	having trouble with my	She paid the invoice	refrigerated , but when I	did not have a physical loca-
an antipsychotic medi-	weight ,” she said .	of around $ 150 for 4-6	received it , it was at room	tion listed on its website or
cation which altered her	“ I ’ d lost some weight	weeks ’ worth of the com-	temperature ,” the doctor ,	invoices .
metabolism and made	with the Ozempic that I ’ d	pounded drug . The for-	who has asked not to be	“ Another red flag for me
it hard to lose weight	been on previously .	mulation arrived at her	named , said .	was they kept ringing me
				within a week of filling the
				script .
				“ I kept getting phone calls
				nearly every day … asking me

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to refill the prescription .”

She did not end up using the medication , opting to throw it out .

When she rang the number back to “ get answers ” and to ask for an official pharmacist receipt , she said it sounded

like a call centre , rather than
a pharmacy centre .
The people she spoke to
hung up on her twice , and
finally on the third attempt , a
woman on the other end admitted
she did not know what a
pharmacist receipt was .
‘ Both my GP and myself have been fooled .’

PREVENT ANOTHER CV EVENT * 1 , 2

* Repatha ® is indicated for the prevention of CV events ( MI , stroke and coronary revascularisation ) in adults with established CV disease in combination with an optimally dosed statin and / or other lipid-lowering therapies , as an adjunct to diet and exercise . 1

‘ Power ’: 15 % relative risk reduction with Repatha ® vs placebo in the composite of the primary endpoint beyond optimised statin ± ezetimibe ( HR : 0.85 ; 95 % CI : 0.79 – 0.92 , p < 0.001 ). 2

PBS Information : Authority Required . Non-familial and familial hypercholesterolaemia . Criteria apply for certain patient populations . Refer to PBS Schedule for full Authority Required Information .

Refer to full Product Information before prescribing ; available from Amgen Australia Pty Ltd , Ph : 1800 803 638 or by scanning the QR code : For more information on Repatha ® or to report an adverse event or product complaint involving Repatha ® , please contact Amgen Medical Information on 1800 803 638 or visit www . amgenmedinfo . com . au .

Precautions : Hypersensitivity reactions . Concomitant lipid lowering therapies – check all relevant prescribing information . Effects of long-term very low LDL-C levels are unknown . Immunogenic potential . Pregnancy Category : B1 . Caution – breastfeeding . Adverse Reactions : Common – nasopharyngitis , upper respiratory tract infection , influenza , back pain , arthralgia , nausea , rash , and injection site reactions ( including injection site pain , erythema , bruising , swelling or haemorrhage ).

Abbreviations : CI , confidence interval ; CV , cardiovascular ; HR , hazard ratio ; MI , myocardial infarction ; PBS , Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme . References : 1 . Repatha ® ( evolocumab ) product information . 2 . Sabatine MS , et al . N Engl J Med 2017 ; 376:1713 – 1722 .

* 1 , 2

The doctor said she was suspicious it was a scam , as she stopped receiving phone calls after asking for a refund and threatening them with the TGA .

She has since filed a complaint with the TGA and would have submitted one to AHPRA , but without a pharmacist receipt , she did not have the name of the compounding pharmacist .

“ It makes you wonder how many of these compounding companies are actually legit and why they are being allowed to operate ,” she said .

“ It ’ s definitely something the GP community needs to know about — both my GP and myself have been fooled .”

She said GPs should ensure an AHPRA-registered pharmacist was making the compounded drug .

“ I feel like some of these compounding groups are slipping through the cracks and the TGA , and taking advantage of people who are getting quite desperate to get semaglutide because they ’ re diabetic or overweight .”

Australian Doctor contacted the supplier for comment but did not receive a response .

The TGA is currently investigating a rise in online pharmacies and telehealth providers advertising weight loss injections .

AMG8657 _ Repatha Print Media 24 _ Aus Doc _ A4 _ 210x273 _( FEMALE )_ V0.4 _ FA . indd 1 5 / 2 / 2024 3:30 pm

Australian Doctor 8th March issue | Page 8

8 NEWS

8 NEWS

Semaglutide scam warning

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PREVENT ANOTHER CV EVENT * 1 , 2