The telehealth platform Hims & Hers, aimed at millennials, announced the addition of Kåre Schultz, a veteran executive from Novo Nordisk, to its board of directors on Monday.
Schultz, who has over 25 years of experience at the Danish pharmaceutical company, has held multiple roles, including president and chief operating officer. He currently serves as the CEO of Teva Pharmaceutical.
In a press release, Schultz expressed enthusiasm for joining 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.”
During Monday’s trading, Hims & Hers stock rose by 3%, marking a 125% increase since the start of the year.
This development follows Hims & Hers recently offering a compounded version of semaglutide, the active ingredient in the popular diabetes and weight loss medications Ozempic and Wegovy, manufactured by Novo Nordisk. The company sells a month’s supply of its weight loss drug for $199, significantly lower than Ozempic’s near $1,000 retail price and Wegovy’s $1,349.
The ongoing shortage of these high-demand, expensive brand-name medications has prompted several telehealth services to utilize a provision in the Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act that permits the sale of compounded drug versions in short supply. Compounding involves tailoring an approved drug by a licensed pharmacist or physician to meet specific patient needs.
While the act typically restricts the compounding of drugs that merely replicate commercially available products, those that are in short supply are not deemed commercially available by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA).
Schultz shared with Bloomberg on Monday that the company anticipates a “long future” in providing compounded semaglutide. When asked whether pharmacies would still be able to create compounded semaglutide once the shortages are resolved, Schultz indicated he was not concerned, as there would continue to be instances that require individualized prescriptions.