New obesity drug could hit US market in 2014

{mosads}Liraglutide’s price and modest success raised questions for some analysts, who questioned its viability in a growing market. Others predicted the treatment could raise as much as $4 billion annually in sales.

Rival drugs Belviq and Qsymia were endorsed by the Food and Drug Administration last year as the first new medicines approved to treat obesity since 1999.

Prescriptions of Qsymia have declined 22 percent their peak in early February, according to Bloomberg, correlating with hesitation among investors.

Analysts predicted that the two new drugs would struggle because of cost concerns, marketing problems and unsure reimbursements from healthcare payers.