Hims & Hers, a telehealth platform aimed at millennials, announced on Monday the addition of Kåre Schultz to its board of directors. Schultz is a seasoned executive with over 25 years of experience at Novo Nordisk, a company well-known for its diabetes and obesity medications, where he served in various roles including president and chief operating officer. Currently, he is 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. I’m thrilled to be a part of this journey.”
Following the announcement, Hims & Hers saw a 3% increase in stock price during Monday’s trading, with shares rising 125% since the start of the year.
This development comes shortly after Hims & Hers began offering a compounded version of semaglutide, the active ingredient in the popular diabetes and weight loss drugs Ozempic and Wegovy, which are manufactured by Novo Nordisk. Hims & Hers is selling a month’s supply of this weight loss medication for $199, significantly cheaper than the nearly $1,000 price for Ozempic and the $1,349 price for Wegovy.
The limited availability of these highly sought-after brand-name drugs has prompted several telehealth platforms to utilize a provision in the Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act that allows for the sale of compounded versions of medications that are in shortage. Compounding involves customizing an approved drug by a state-licensed pharmacist or physician to meet the specific needs of individual patients.
Typically, the Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act prohibits the compounding of drugs that merely replicate commercially available medications. However, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) does not classify drugs in shortage as commercially available.
Schultz mentioned to Bloomberg that the company sees a “long future” in offering compounded semaglutide. When asked about the future availability of compounded semaglutide after shortages are resolved, Schultz indicated confidence that there would still be circumstances necessitating individualized prescriptions.