Hims & Hers, a telehealth platform aimed at millennials, announced on Monday the appointment of Kåre Schultz, a former executive at Novo Nordisk, to its board of directors.
Schultz brings extensive experience from his over 25 years at Novo Nordisk, where he held positions such as president and chief operating officer. He currently serves as the CEO of Teva Pharmaceutical.
In a press release, Schultz expressed excitement about joining Hims & Hers, stating, “This is the first company I have seen that is leveraging modern tools to break down barriers and change the way people access health solutions.” He believes the company is poised to transform the healthcare industry.
Following the announcement, Hims & Hers shares rose by 3% in Monday morning trading, continuing a trend that has seen the stock price increase by 125% since the start of the year.
The news comes shortly after Hims & Hers began offering a compounded version of semaglutide, the active ingredient in popular diabetes and weight-loss medications Ozempic and Wegovy, both manufactured by Novo Nordisk. Hims & Hers is selling this weight loss medication at $199 for a month’s supply, significantly lower than the nearly $1,000 for Ozempic and $1,349 for Wegovy.
The availability of these sought-after drugs has encouraged telehealth platforms to utilize a provision in the Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act allowing them to sell compounded versions of medications that are in short supply. Compounding involves customizing a licensed drug by a pharmacist or physician to meet an individual patient’s needs.
While the Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act typically prohibits the compounding of drugs that are simply replicas of commercially available ones, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) does not consider drugs in shortage to be commercially available.
Schultz told Bloomberg that he believes the company has a “long future” in offering compounded semaglutide and noted that even after shortages end, there will still be a need for individualized prescriptions.