MASSIVE Winter Storm Could Spoil Your GLP-1 Meds

Here are the manufacturer recommendations, and what you can do.

Originally published on January 22, 2026 on obesity.news

Disclaimer: The following information is not medical advice, I am not a Doctor. Please consult with your prescribing physician on all matters related to your prescription drugs.

UPDATED 1/22/26 12:57PM to reflect a discrepancy between the Mounjaro and Zepbound packaging relating to refrigerating after reaching room temp.

There is a generational winter storm bearing down on a massive stretch of the country. For many people, a long power outage means cold showers, maybe some spoiled food, and inconvenience.

For people on GLP-1 medications, it can mean something much worse. Thousands of dollars in medication ruined overnight, with no easy way to replace it.

I want to walk you through exactly how to protect your GLP-1 medication during a prolonged outage. Everything here is grounded in manufacturer package inserts and real world preparedness that people relying on insulin and biologics have used for decades.

If you are anywhere near the storm path, read and share this now. Many folks are not thinking in terms of their medicine right now, but the cost is too great not to. Do not wait until the lights go out.

The first rule applies to every GLP-1, no exceptions.

None of these medications can ever be frozen. If they freeze, they must be thrown away. Every manufacturer is explicit about this. Freezing is not a maybe. It is not a judgment call. It is automatic disposal. PLACING YOUR MEDS IN THE SNOW COULD FREEZE THEM!

That single rule alone is why storm prep matters.

Zepbound and Mounjaro are the strictest, and this is where people get burned.

Both are tirzepatide. Both behave the same way when it comes to storage.

According to their package inserts, these medications are normally refrigerated. They can be stored at room temperature up to 86 degrees if needed, but only for a limited time. 21 days for single dose pens and vials. 30 total for multi dose formats, but those formats are not commercially available in the US currently (although there was some breaking news we had on the Zepbound kwik-pens today).

Here is the part people miss.

Once Zepbound has been stored at room temperature, the insert explicitly states it must not be returned to the refrigerator. That means when the meds hit room temp, that starts a 21 day clock. When that clock runs out, the medication is done. There is no reset. There is no workaround.

For unknown reasons, Mounjaro single use presentations do not include the same instruction to avoid returning the medication to the refrigerator after reaching room temp. Presumably leaving the door open that the 21 days out of the fridge need not be consecutive.

Wegovy is single use and often misunderstood.

Wegovy is semaglutide, but it is not Ozempic. The pen design and storage rules are different.

Wegovy pens are single use. One injection, one pen, then it is discarded.

According to the Wegovy package insert, unused pens are normally stored in the refrigerator. If needed, they can be stored outside the refrigerator between 46 and 86 degrees for up to 28 total days.

Here is the nuance that matters.

The Wegovy insert does not say that putting the pen back in the refrigerator resets that 28 day clock. It also does not explicitly say you cannot put it back. What it does clearly state is that once a pen has been out of the refrigerator for a total of 28 days, it must be discarded.

That makes Wegovy a cumulative out of fridge timer, not a flexible storage option you can game.

If you take nothing else from this section, take this. Once Wegovy has been out of the fridge, you

should be tracking total time, not assuming refrigeration buys you more days.

Ozempic is different, and the most forgiving.

Ozempic is also semaglutide, but the storage is a bit more forgiving due to its multi-use pen.

The Ozempic insert states that after first use, the pen may be stored at room temperature or in the refrigerator for up to 56 days total. That dual language is explicit. Room temperature or refrigerated during the same use window.

This is why pharmacists interpret Ozempic as allowing movement between storage conditions, as long as total time and temperature limits are respected. This difference matters during outages.

Now let us talk about what you should actually be doing before the storm hits.

This is not medical advice. This is logistics.

People who rely on insulin and biologics have been doing this for years. You need a medication cooling plan that does not depend on grid power. Medical grade travel coolers designed for insulin work well for GLP-1 medications. Battery powered or generator powered mini fridges are ideal if outages stretch into days or weeks.

Reusable gel packs matter, but medication should never sit directly against frozen packs. Always buffer with insulation and keep everything in the original carton to protect from light.

Most important of all, use a thermometer. Guessing temperature is how people lose medication without realizing it.

Preparation costs far less than replacement. If you’re interested, I have compiled a list of these shopable items in our amazon affiliate store.

A quick word on safety.

Medication matters. Your life matters more.

If conditions are dangerous, do not put yourself at risk trying to save food or medicine. No vial or pen is worth driving on untreated roads, navigating downed power lines, or running a generator indoors.

Plan ahead now so you are not forced to make risky decisions later.

If you are in the storm path, stay informed using official local resources, not social media rumors. In the United States, weather.gov is the best national starting point. It connects you directly to your local National Weather Service office with real time alerts, outage forecasts, and safety guidance specific to your area.

For power updates, your local electric utility usually maintains a live outage map. Bookmark it now so you are not guessing in the dark.

If emergency instructions are issued by local officials, follow them. Medication can sometimes be replaced. You cannot.

One last thing worth knowing.

In the aftermath of past major storms and natural disasters, manufacturers including Eli Lilly have, at times, offered replacement assistance programs for patients whose medication was lost due to circumstances outside their control.

These programs are not automatic. They are not guaranteed. And they are usually announced after the scope of the damage is clear.

If a major storm causes prolonged outages and medication loss, there may be options available that your pharmacy or care team does not immediately surface.

If that happens, people are welcome to reach out to me and I will share what I am hearing and how others are navigating replacement conversations in real time.

The goal is not false hope. The goal is making sure no one assumes there are zero options when history suggests that sometimes, there are.

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