Ozempic (semaglutide) supply information

Update: 

• The Ozempic shortage has now resolved, and new as well as existing patients can be prescribed and access treatment.
• The 1.5 mL presentation of Ozempic 0.25 mg/0.5 mg pre-filled pen will be discontinued from 31 December 2025, but it is being replaced by a 3 mL pen presentation.
• The PBS Supply Only listing for the 1.5 mL Ozempic 0.25 mg/0.5 mg pre-filled pen has been extended to 1 June 2026.

Pharmaceutical company Novo Nordisk has advised us that the Ozempic (semaglutide) shortage has resolved. Patients can be prescribed Ozempic for both initiation and maintenance of treatment. Pharmacists can order stock from wholesalers to fill prescriptions for Ozempic now that Australian supply has returned to normal.

Novo Nordisk also previously advised us that a new 3 mL presentation of Ozempic (semaglutide) 0.25 mg/0.5 mg pre-filled pen is replacing the 1.5 mL presentation of Ozempic 0.25 mg/0.5 mg pre-filled pen, which will be discontinued from 31 December 2025. 

The 1.5 mL presentation will remain on the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme (PBS) as a PBS Supply Only listing until 1 June 2026, when it will be removed. This means that Ozempic 0.25 mg/0.5 mg as a 1.5 mL presentation remains available for dispensing but not for prescribing.

To minimise the impact of this transition on patients and healthcare professionals, the 2 presentations have been a-flagged, making them interchangeable on the PBS. This means that PBS prescriptions for the 1.5 mL presentation of Ozempic 0.25 mg/0.5 mg pre-filled pen can be used to access subsidised supply of the 3 mL presentation under the PBS, providing the prescriptions for the 1.5 mL presentation were written before 1 June 2025.   

Information for patients

Your regular pharmacy should be able to fill your prescription for Ozempic now that the shortage has been resolved. 

If you have a PBS prescription for the 1.5 mL presentation of Ozempic 0.25 mg/0.5 mg pre-filled pen written before 1 June 2025, you can use it to obtain the 3 mL presentation, as the 2 presentations are ‘a-flagged’ on the PBS. A-flagging means your pharmacist will be able to use your existing prescription to supply either the 1.5 mL or 3 mL presentation. 

If you have a private (non-PBS) prescription, you can use it to get either the 1.5 mL or 3 mL presentation of Ozempic 0.25 mg/0.5 mg pre-filled pen from your pharmacist.

There are limited quantities of the 1.5 mL presentation, which is being replaced with the 3 mL presentation of Ozempic 0.25 mg/0.5 mg pre-filled pen. 

The new 3 mL pre-filled pen presentation of Ozempic 0.25 mg/0.5 mg looks slightly different to the 1.5 mL presentation because it contains a different concentration of the active ingredient (semaglutide) in a larger volume. However, when you administer your dose, you will still receive the same amount of semaglutide as before.  

Both products have the same administration and dosing instructions, and they contain the same number of doses per pen. 

Talk to your doctor or pharmacist if you have any questions about these changes.

Information for pharmacists

With the Ozempic shortage now resolved, you can contact your regular wholesaler to order supplies of Ozempic without restriction. 

The new 3 mL presentation of Ozempic 0.25 mg/0.5 mg pre-filled pen is available and is PBS subsidised (criteria dependent). This is replacing the 1.5 mL presentation of Ozempic 0.25 mg/0.5 mg pre-filled pen, which will be discontinued from 31 December 2025.

The 1.5 mL presentation will continue to be PBS Supply Only until the start of June 2026. This means only prescriptions written before 1 June 2025 for the 1.5 mL presentation will be eligible for PBS supply during the Supply Only period. The presentations are interchangeable and a-flagged on the PBS. 

Patients with a private (non-PBS) prescription for Ozempic 0.25 mg/0.5 mg pre-filled pen may be supplied either the 1.5 mL or 3 mL presentation.

Please inform patients that the new 3 mL pre-filled pen presentation of Ozempic 0.25 mg/0.5 mg looks slightly different to the 1.5 mL product they previously received, but it:

• delivers the same dose of active ingredient
• contains the same number of doses
• has the same instructions for administration and dosing.

To support the patient in administering these medicines, you can use the Consumer Medicines Information (CMI) leaflet.

Please note that the Ozempic 1 mg presentation is also supplied in a 3 mL pre-filled pen. You must therefore be careful when dispensing 3 mL pre-filled pen presentations of Ozempic to ensure the patient is receiving the correct prescribed strength. 

Moving forward, there may be patients who have previously received the 3 mL presentation of Ozempic 0.25 mg/0.5 mg who then transition to the 3 mL pre-filled pen presentation of Ozempic 1 mg (the higher dose). Please ensure these patients are aware of this change, and if they still have access to both dose presentations, advise them to carefully check the dose on the pre-filled pen before administering it.

Information for prescribers

As the shortage of Ozempic has resolved, you can now prescribe it for patients for both initiation and maintenance of treatment.

The PBS criteria – Ozempic is for treatment of type 2 diabetes when certain conditions are met – remains unchanged.

Please be aware that the 1.5 mL presentation of Ozempic 0.25 mg/0.5 mg pre-filled pen is being discontinued from 31 December 2025, and it will be Supply Only on the PBS until 1 June 2026. As such, you will only be able to write PBS prescriptions for the 3 mL presentation of Ozempic 0.25 mg/0.5 mg pre-filled pen. Existing PBS prescriptions written before 1 June 2025 for the 1.5 mL presentation can be dispensed under the PBS during the Supply Only period. 

The 2 presentations of Ozempic 0.25 mg/0.5 mg pre-filled pen are interchangeable and a-flagged on the PBS. This means that pharmacists can use existing PBS prescriptions for the 1.5 mL presentation to supply the 3 mL presentation. 

Patients with private (non-PBS) prescriptions may get the 1.5 mL or 3 mL presentation of Ozempic 0.25 mg/0.5 mg pre-filled pen without the need for a new prescription. 

Please inform your patients that the new 3 mL pre-filled pen presentation of Ozempic 0.25 mg/0.5 mg looks slightly different to the 1.5 mL product they previously received but it: 

• delivers the same dose of active ingredient
• contains the same number of doses
• has the same instructions for administration and dosing.