Hims & Hers, a telehealth platform catering to millennials, announced on Monday the addition of Kåre Schultz, a seasoned executive from Novo Nordisk, to its board of directors.
Schultz brings over 25 years of experience from the Danish pharmaceutical company, renowned for its diabetes and obesity medications, where he held various positions, including president and chief operating officer. He currently serves as the CEO of Teva Pharmaceutical.
In a press release, Schultz expressed enthusiasm about Hims & Hers, stating, “This is the first company I have seen that is leveraging today’s modern tools to truly break down barriers and change the status quo of how people access the health solutions they need to live their fullest lives.” He is excited to be part of the company’s mission to transform the healthcare landscape.
Following the announcement, Hims & Hers saw a 3% increase in stock value during Monday morning trading, with shares rising 125% since the start of the year.
This news comes on the heels of Hims & Hers offering a compounded version of semaglutide, the active ingredient in popular diabetes and weight loss medications Ozempic and Wegovy, both developed by Novo Nordisk. The company is pricing a month’s supply of the weight loss treatment at $199, significantly lower than Ozempic’s nearly $1,000 list price and Wegovy’s $1,349 price tag.
The scarcity of these sought-after medications has prompted several telehealth companies to utilize a provision in the Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act that permits the sale of compounded forms of drugs that are in shortage. Compounding involves customizing an approved medication by a licensed pharmacist or physician to meet specific patient needs.
While the Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act generally prohibits the compounding of medications that mimic commercially available drugs, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) does not classify drugs in shortage as commercially available.
Schultz remarked to Bloomberg on Monday that Hims & Hers has a “long future” in providing compounded semaglutide. When questioned about the ability of pharmacies to continue making compounded semaglutide once shortages are resolved, he assured that individualized prescriptions would still necessitate such compounding methods.