Effective September 1, the updated 2026 edition of China's National Essential Medicines List is officially in force, marking a significant milestone as the first major revision since 2018. Among the newly added therapies are the GLP-1 receptor agonist (GLP-1 RA) semaglutide injection (strengths of 1.34 mg/ml in 1.5 ml and 3 ml pre-filled pens under the trade name Novotai), the long-acting basal insulin degludec (3 ml: 300 units, marketed as Novoda), and the rapid-acting insulin aspart (3 ml: 300 units, known as Novorapid), all manufactured by Novo-Nordisk A/S. This update enhances the availability of innovative glucose-lowering treatments at primary care facilities, offering improved options for standardized diabetes management in community-level healthcare settings.

Semaglutide injection (Novotai) is now the sole GLP-1 RA weekly formulation included in the essential medicines list, uniquely supporting integrated management of diabetes alongside cardiovascular and kidney health. Prior to this, the World Health Organization had already listed semaglutide injection in its 2025 Essential Medicines List as a preferred recommendation. With its inclusion in China's national list, the molecule now holds dual endorsements from both the WHO and China's health authorities, filling a long-standing gap for GLP-1 RA weekly preparations in the national catalog.

As the only GLP-1 RA weekly agent approved for treating type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular indications, and chronic kidney disease, Novotai facilitates comprehensive cardio-renal-metabolic care. Clinical data from Chinese populations demonstrate that Novotai achieves significant reductions in glycated hemoglobin (HbA1c) of up to 1.8%, with 86.1% of patients reaching the target of HbA1c below 7%. Furthermore, it cuts the risk of major adverse cardiovascular events by 26% and reduces composite kidney events by 24%, while also improving lipid profiles, blood pressure, and body weight across multiple metabolic parameters.

China's primary diabetes care currently contends with multiple hurdles, including limited patient awareness, poor adherence, financial constraints, uneven distribution of medical resources, and gaps in diagnostic and therapeutic capabilities at the grassroots level. The Healthy China Action Plan for Diabetes Prevention and Control (2024–2030) sets a national target of achieving a 70% or higher standardized management rate for type 2 diabetes patients in primary institutions by 2030. The selection criteria for the National Essential Medicines List emphasize necessity for prevention and treatment, safety and efficacy, reasonable pricing, and ease of use. Semaglutide injection (Novotai) fits these requirements well for grassroots settings: its intelligent glucose-lowering mechanism results in an extremely low incidence of hypoglycemia, with long-term safety and tolerability demonstrated even when used as monotherapy without additional glucose-lowering agents. The once-weekly dosing schedule markedly reduces injection frequency, and the dose adjustment protocol is simple—requiring no self-monitoring of blood glucose for titration—making it easy for primary care physicians to prescribe and manage, and highly suitable for deployment across various levels of healthcare institutions.

With this new inclusion, semaglutide injection (Novotai) now achieves complete access across all three key catalogs: the WHO Essential Medicines List, China's National Essential Medicines List, and the National Reimbursement Drug List (NRDL). It becomes the only GLP-1 RA weekly formulation currently present in all three, realizing a "triple catalog, dual essential list" status that promotes multi-disease co-management, directly benefiting patients in primary care and advancing the Healthy China initiative.

Dr. Cai Yan, Global Senior Vice President and President of the Greater China region at Novo-Nordisk A/S, expressed gratitude: "As a global biopharmaceutical company with a century-long focus on diabetes, we sincerely thank the National Health Commission, relevant government departments, and experts across fields for their efforts in continuously improving the essential medicines system and driving list updates. We are delighted that our original research medicine from Denmark can now reach primary care settings, becoming a routine part of patients' daily treatment and benefiting more Chinese diabetics. Novo-Nordisk will continue to leverage our full industrial chain footprint to empower primary care, enabling more Chinese patients to access world-leading, high-quality medical innovations and contributing to the realization of the Healthy China 2030 chronic disease management goals."

Beyond semaglutide injection (Novotai), the latest list revision also incorporates the long-acting basal insulin degludec injection (Novoda) and the rapid-acting insulin aspart injection (Novorapid). Together, these additions form a diversified therapeutic portfolio spanning basal insulin, prandial insulin, and GLP-1 RA classes, providing primary care clinicians with richer, more personalized treatment choices tailored to individual patient needs.