Hims & Hers, a telehealth platform targeting millennials, announced the addition of Kåre Schultz, a veteran executive from Novo Nordisk, to its board of directors on Monday. Schultz has over 25 years of experience at the Danish pharmaceutical company, known 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 his excitement about Hims & Hers, stating, “Hims & Hers is on a trajectory to upend the healthcare industry. In my long career in the pharmaceutical industry, 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. I’m thrilled to be a part of this journey.”
Following the announcement, Hims & Hers saw its stock rise by 3% during morning trading, marking a total increase of 125% for the year. This news comes shortly after the company started offering a compounded version of semaglutide, the active ingredient in popular diabetes and weight loss medications Ozempic and Wegovy, manufactured by Novo Nordisk.
Hims & Hers is selling a month’s supply of this weight loss medication for $199, significantly lower than the nearly $1,000 list price of Ozempic and the $1,349 price of Wegovy. The shortage of these sought-after medications has encouraged several telehealth platforms to utilize a section of the Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act that permits the sale of compounded versions of drugs that are in short supply.
Compounding involves tailoring an approved drug by a licensed pharmacist or physician to suit the specific needs of an individual patient. Normally, the Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act prohibits the compounding of medications that merely replicate commercially available drugs. However, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) does not classify drugs that are in shortage as commercially available.
On Monday, Schultz informed Bloomberg that the company has a promising future in selling compounded semaglutide. When questioned about the continued ability to compound semaglutide after the shortage resolves, he noted that there would still be instances where patients require personalized prescriptions.