Compounding Explained · FormBlends network
Understand what a compounded GLP-1 is, who may make it, and how to check the pharmacy.
503A versus 503B, what changed when the shortages ended, how to look up a licence in every state, and how to read a certificate of analysis.
- 119
- FDA-registered 503B outsourcing facilities
- FDA-registered 503B facilities you can check by name before you order.
- Nov 27, 2013
- section 503B created by the Drug Quality and Security Act
- The day Congress created the 503B category after a deadly outbreak.
- Feb 21, 2025
- semaglutide shortage declared resolved; tirzepatide December 19, 2024
- The day the semaglutide shortage ended, which changed what pharmacies may compound.
Start here
Three ways in, depending on what you need right now
- 01Pharmacy vetting checklist generatorAnswer ten questions, get a printable list of what to verify and where.
- 02503A versus 503B: the two kinds of compounder, in plain EnglishThere are two kinds of compounder. A 503A pharmacy makes a drug for one named patient on a prescription.
- 03Browse explainers10 pages, most recently updated September 4, 2026
Interactive
The calculator
Each runs in your browser, shows its formula, and prints a dated assumptions note. Nothing you type leaves the page.
Reading
Start with these
Each page opens with a plain-English summary, a figure drawn from the data, the numbers that matter, and what it means if you're considering treatment.
Explainers
503A versus 503B: the two kinds of compounder, in plain English
You'll get: There are two kinds of compounder. A 503A pharmacy makes a drug for one named patient on a prescription.
What sections 503A and 503B actually say, who inspects each kind of compounder, what each may ship and to whom, and why neither makes an FDA-approved drug.
Explainers
What "essentially a copy" means, and why it decides whether a compounded GLP-1 is lawful
You'll get: A pharmacy may not routinely copy a drug that is on sale, unless there is a real difference for you.
The phrase that separates lawful patient-specific compounding from copying an approved drug: the test, the exception, and what a prescriber must document.
Explainers
The GLP-1 shortage timeline, with every date from an FDA source
You'll get: Compounding of these two drugs grew because the brand versions were on the FDA shortage list.
When semaglutide and tirzepatide went on the FDA shortage list, when each came off, the court fight, the wind-down windows, and the 2025 ruling.
Explainers
What a compounding pharmacy may and may not do with GLP-1s now
You'll get: Since the shortages ended, a pharmacy may still compound a GLP-1 for you if your prescriber records a real difference for you.
After the shortage resolutions: what the FDA says 503A compounders can still do, what they cannot, the tighter 503B position, and how to read an offer.
Explainers
What a certificate of analysis shows, and how to read one line by line
You'll get: A certificate of analysis is a lab report for one batch. It shows what was tested, the results, and who tested it.
A COA is a lab report for one lot. Here is what each section means, which tests matter for an injectable compounded drug, how to match the document to your vial, and the things a COA cannot tell you.
Live updates
What changed since this site was written
Sources checked October 19, 2026, refreshed every six hours.
Newest on PubMed
Papers indexed in the last year matching compounded GLP-1 drugs (14 in total).
- Accidental overdoses and adverse effects from compounded GLP-1 agonists
Nursing · October 1, 2026 · PubMed 42765760
- Compounding stigma: An experimental study comparing perceptions of an individual using Ozempic, bariatric surgery, or behavior modification
Soc Sci Med · October 1, 2026 · PubMed 42612445
- Compounded GLP-1 Drugs Remain Prevalent After Drug Shortage
JAMA · September 1, 2026 · PubMed 42566208
- Impurities and Potential Immunogenicity Associated With Follow-on and Compounded Glucagon-like Peptide-1 Receptor Agonists
Pharm Res · August 1, 2026 · PubMed 42533250
- Postshortage Compounded GLP-1 RA Market in 2 States With Potentially High Demand
JAMA Health Forum · July 2, 2026 · PubMed 42467450
FDA and enforcement tracker
FormBlends research feed, data as of September 4, 2026.
September 1, 2026 · Adverse-event report update
FDA GLP-1 concerns page updated: 990 adverse-event reports for compounded semaglutide and >730 for compounded tirzepatide (as of May 31, 2026); border screening and fake-pharmacy labelsAugust 28, 2026 · Label or price event
FDA approves Mounjaro (tirzepatide) to reduce MACE risk in adults with type 2 diabetes (SURPASS-CVOT)August 27, 2026 · Court decision
Fifth Circuit affirms summary judgment for FDA in both GLP-1 shortage cases (Nos. 25-10600 tirzepatide; 25-10758 semaglutide)August 24, 2026 · FDA warning letter
FDA warning letters to five peptide vendors: Peak Performance Peptides (735127), Royal Peptides (734884), NuScience Peptides (733652), Peptide Partners (735063), TXP Innovations dba Tex Peptides (735067)August 24, 2026 · FDA warning letter
FDA warning letter: TXP Innovations LLC dba Tex Peptides (Unapproved New Drugs/Misbranded)
Compounded price index
Median all-in cash price per 28 days across providers, as of September 3, 2026.
- semaglutide, month 1 at 0.25 mg/week
- $197
- median of 14 providers
- semaglutide, month 4 at 1 mg/week
- $199
- median of 13 providers
- tirzepatide, month 1 at 2.5 mg/week
- $268
- median of 14 providers
- tirzepatide, month 4 at 5 mg/week
- $299
- median of 12 providers
- September 3, 2026: Index, All, baseline 51 rows. First weekly snapshot. Changes against this baseline will be listed here with the date they were observed.
PubMed lists come from NCBI E-utilities and are not reviewed by us before they appear. Feeds are FormBlends Research data (CC BY 4.0); FormBlends sells compounded GLP-1 drugs and appears in the price index under the same rules as every other provider. Compounded drugs are not FDA approved.
Browse
Sections
15 pages across 3 sections, each sourced to a label, a trial or a dated manufacturer page.
Explainers
You'll get: 10 sourced pages, each with a plain-English opener
What sections 503A and 503B actually say, who inspects each kind of compounder, what each may ship and to...
State Boards
You'll get: 3 sourced pages, each with a plain-English opener
Which board to search (usually two), what the licence record shows, what active does and does not mean, and...
Timeline
You'll get: 2 sourced pages, each with a plain-English opener
Every dated FDA action tied to a primary document: the 2012 outbreak, the 2013 law, the shortage...
Where the facts come from
Every date on this site is taken from an FDA page, an FDA declaratory order, a warning letter, a Federal Register notice or a state board site, with the link and the date we checked it. Where FDA has not said something, we say so rather than fill the gap. Compounded drugs are not FDA approved, and nothing here changes that.
What this site does not do
It does not rank or recommend pharmacies, it does not name pharmacies beyond what an FDA document names, and it does not give medical or legal advice. The vetting checklist tool tells you what to verify and where. Whether to proceed is a decision for you and a licensed prescriber.