Lilly sues six companies over alleged illegal sales of experimental obesity drug retatrutide
Lilly says the products are unapproved and illegal, and Customs and Border Protection intercepted more than 31,000 units in fiscal 2025.
- On Wednesday, August 12, 2026, Eli Lilly and Company filed six lawsuits against U.S. entities selling unapproved retatrutide, escalating its fight to protect patients from the dangerous black market.
- Retatrutide remains in Phase 3 clinical trials without Food and Drug Administration approval, yet high demand for obesity treatments has fueled a widespread illicit market despite the drug's unapproved status.
- Lilly Chief Medical Officer Dr. David Hyman warned black-market products are "entirely unverified, unapproved and not worth the risk," while Associate Vice President Dr. Max Denning cautioned users face "huge amount of risk."
- After reporting more than 14,000 illicit websites and listings to authorities, the company is calling on social media platforms, payment processors, and shipping firms to sever the infrastructure enabling illegal sales.
- Beyond the lawsuits, Lilly has referred more than 200 individuals and entities to the U.S. Justice Department and other regulators, while planning to seek FDA approval for retatrutide in early 2027.
22 Articles
22 Articles
(Seoul = Yonhap News) Reporter Jung Joo-ho = U.S. pharmaceutical company Eli Lilly [is] its unapproved next-generation obesity treatment 'retatrutide' [cancer...
Eli Lilly tries to stop GLP-1 copycats
Eli Lilly said it filed six lawsuits against US companies it accused of selling illicit versions of its experimental obesity drug retatrutide, intensifying the GLP-1-maker’s crackdown on copycat versions of its products. Retatrutide hasn’t gotten sign off from the US Food and Drug Administration, and is “entirely unverified, unapproved and not worth the risk,” Lilly said. Originally explored as a treatment for diabetes, GLP-1 drugs have shown be…
Eli Lilly targets alleged black market sales of its experimental GLP-1 drug
Eli Lilly is suing six entities that it alleges are selling black market versions of its experimental weight-loss drug retatrutide. Lilly’s lawsuits target U.S. entities selling illegal retatrutide products, including compounding pharmacies, medical spas and online sellers that sell retatrutide as a weight-loss “hack.” Those entities falsely claim their drugs are for “research-use only” when…
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