Telehealth platform Hims & Hers has announced the appointment of Kåre Schultz, a former executive at Novo Nordisk, to its board of directors. Schultz, who has over 25 years of experience in the pharmaceutical industry, is currently the CEO of Teva Pharmaceutical and previously held significant roles at Novo Nordisk, a company renowned for its diabetes and obesity treatments.
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.” The company’s stock saw a 3% increase during morning trading on the day of the announcement and has surged by 125% since the beginning of the year.
This development follows the recent introduction of a compounded version of semaglutide by Hims & Hers, the active ingredient in well-known diabetes and weight loss medications Ozempic and Wegovy, which are produced by Novo Nordisk. Hims & Hers is pricing a month’s supply of the compounded medication at $199, significantly lower than the nearly $1,000 price for Ozempic and $1,349 for Wegovy.
The limited availability of these high-demand drugs has prompted telehealth services to utilize a provision in the Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act that permits the sale of compounded medications in short supply. Compounding involves customizing medications by licensed pharmacists or physicians to meet specific patient needs.
While the FDA normally restricts the compounding of drugs that are commercially available, those deemed in shortage are not classified as such. Schultz indicated in an interview that Hims & Hers sees a long-term opportunity in offering compounded semaglutide and is confident that even after shortages end, there will still be a need for individualized prescriptions.