A new FDA-approved weight loss pill is entering the market this month.
Drugmaker Eli Lilly announced Wednesday that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved its daily oral orforglipron pill, which will be marketed under the name Foundayo, to treat obesity.
Foundayo will be the second oral GLP-1 drug available to consumers, after competitor Novo Nordisk introduced its Wegovy pill in January.
Eli Lilly said in research studies, participants who took Foundayo lost about 25 pounds on average over 72 weeks and about 27 pounds on the highest dose, 17.2 milligrams a day, over 72 weeks.
Here is what to know about the new Foundayo GLP-1 pill.
Like the Wegovy pill, the new Foundayo pill is meant to be taken once a day, but the difference is that it can be taken any time of the day, with no food or water restrictions.
"There are a lot of people who really don't want to take an injection. They don't want to worry about having to keep the drug refrigerated. They don't want to worry about remembering, 'OK, it's this week, and I have to take it the following week.' So it's just easier to fit into your life when you have a pill," ABC News chief medical correspondent Dr. Tara Narula said of the new option on "Good Morning America" Thursday.
The Foundayo pill will be available in six different doses, in 0.8 mg, 2.5 mg, 5.5 mg, 9 mg, 14.5 mg, and 17.2 mg tablets.
Narula also noted that Eli Lilly claims Foundayo has been shown to improve heart health indicators in research studies, such as waist circumference, non-HDL cholesterol, triglycerides and systolic blood pressure.
"When you think about normalizing obesity and the treatment of it, people are used to taking a pill for hypertension or for high cholesterol, so here's another way that it just normalizes it to take a pill for a condition that we know is a chronic disease," Narula said.
Novo Nordisk's weekly injection Wegovy has an extra FDA-approved benefit of reducing severe cardiac issues in people with heart disease based on clinical studies.
According to Eli Lilly, based on clinical studies, the side effects of the Foundayo pill include nausea, constipation, diarrhea, vomiting, indigestion, stomach or abdominal pain, headache, swollen belly, tiredness, belching, heartburn, gas, and hair loss.
Eli Lilly said the company is "committed to making Foundayo accessible and affordable" and will make the new oral GLP-1 pill available by prescription starting April 6.
Eli Lilly said pricing for Foundayo through its self-pay LillyDirect program will start at $149 a month for the lowest dose of 0.8 mg and that some insurance companies may cover some of the cost of Foundayo.
Those eligible to get Foundayo with insurance may pay as low as $25 a month for the drug.
Individuals with Medicare Part D may also be able to get Foundayo for as low as $50 a month, starting July 1, if they have a BMI of 35 or higher or have some other diagnosis along with obesity.
