Dr. Reddy's Semaglutide Shortage Drags On as Generic Ozempic Struggles to Reach Pharmacies

Nearly two months after Dr. Reddy's Laboratories reported a manufacturing disruption affecting its generic semaglutide injection, the shortage remains open on Health Canada's official tracker, with no resolution date in sight. Meanwhile, fresh sales data published this week show that neither of Canada's two approved semaglutide generics -- from Dr. Reddy's and Apotex -- has captured more than a sliver of the market, even months after generic competition to Ozempic became possible for the first time among G7 countries.

Key takeaways

• Dr. Reddy's Semaglutide Injection 1.34 mg (DIN 02567806) has been listed as an "anticipated shortage" on Health Canada's shortage tracker since July 10, 2026, due to a manufacturing disruption; the estimated end date is still listed as "unknown."
• Apotex's generic semaglutide has no open shortage or discontinuation report in the same database as of this writing, so any difficulty pharmacies report sourcing it isn't showing up as an officially declared manufacturer shortage.
• Brand-name Ozempic has no open shortage report; its most recent entries are all marked "resolved," consistent with pharmacists' reports that the brand remains readily available.
• According to sales data reported this week by a Canadian pharmacist writing for Science-Based Medicine, Apotex sold about $15 million of its generic through the first half of 2026 and Dr. Reddy's about $1 million, against $1.49 billion in brand Ozempic sales over the same period.

The Dr. Reddy's shortage, in detail

Health Canada's shortage report for Dr. Reddy's Semaglutide Injection lists the cause as "disruption of the manufacture of the drug," with an anticipated start date of July 20, 2026. The report has not been updated since it was filed, and no actual start date, resolution, or end date has been recorded. Federal shortage reporting is mandatory for manufacturers of medically necessary drugs but is self-reported and updated on the company's own schedule -- an unresolved "anticipated" status this long generally means the underlying supply problem has not been fixed, not that Health Canada has lost track of it.

Apotex: no shortage report, but a slow start

Apotex's generic semaglutide does not appear in Health Canada's shortage and discontinuation database under any search for "semaglutide," "Apo-semaglutide," or "Apotex." That means if a pharmacy can't source it from its usual wholesaler, the cause is not an officially declared manufacturer shortage -- it could instead reflect limited production volume, uneven wholesaler distribution, or simply a product that launched more recently than many pharmacies' ordering systems have caught up with. Apotex was first to market with a generic in April 2026, ahead of expectations, after semaglutide's Canadian patent lapsed on January 4, 2026 -- reportedly an oversight by Novo Nordisk that made Canada the first G7 country with generic competition to the drug.

Why brand Ozempic still dominates

Canadian semaglutide sales have grown from $126 million in 2019 to $2.9 billion in 2025, and brand Ozempic remains on pace for a record year in 2026 even with generics on the market. Generic pricing is currently around $100 per month, a significant discount versus the brand, but Novo Nordisk has reportedly moved to offer coupons that discount the net price of Ozempic for patients, blunting some of the generics' price advantage. With both generic products still ramping up supply and distribution just months after launch, brand Ozempic's head start and marketing reach appear to be holding most of the market for now.

Practice guidance for pharmacists

• Check Health Canada's shortage and discontinuation database by DIN before promising a patient a generic switch, rather than assuming availability based on approval status alone.
• For Dr. Reddy's product specifically, confirm current stock with the manufacturer or wholesaler before committing to a switch, since the shortage has no published end date.
• If a generic can't be sourced, don't assume it's a manufacturer shortage -- it may be a wholesaler or distribution gap; contacting the manufacturer directly can clarify which it is.
• Watch for compounded "semaglutide" products offered as a workaround: Health Canada has warned that compounding sterile GLP-1 products is high-risk and has recalled at least two compounded semaglutide products, including ones combined with unproven additives like pyridoxine (vitamin B6).
• Document substitution attempts and outcomes so patients aren't repeatedly sent back and forth between pharmacy and prescriber over supply issues.
• Set patient expectations early: with two different generics behaving very differently in the market, availability may vary significantly by wholesaler and region.

What's next

Additional semaglutide generics are expected to reach the Canadian market as more manufacturers clear regulatory review, which should ease supply pressure over time. Until Dr. Reddy's shortage report is updated with a resolution, pharmacists have no official timeline for when that specific product will be reliably available again.