Telehealth platform Hims & Hers announced on Monday the addition of Kåre Schultz, a former executive at Novo Nordisk, to its board of directors.
Schultz, who has over 25 years of experience with the Danish pharmaceutical company renowned for its diabetes and obesity medications, previously held positions including president and chief operating officer. He currently serves as the CEO of Teva Pharmaceutical.
“I believe Hims & Hers is positioned to transform the healthcare landscape,” Schultz stated in a press release. “Throughout my extensive career in the pharmaceutical sector, I’ve not observed another company that effectively utilizes modern technology to dismantle barriers and alter the conventional methods of access to health solutions necessary for optimal living. I am excited to be part of this mission.”
Following this announcement, Hims & Hers stock rose by 3% during Monday morning trading, with shares up 125% since the start of the year.
This development arrives just months after Hims & Hers began offering a compounded form of semaglutide, the active ingredient in popular diabetes and weight loss medications Ozempic and Wegovy, both produced by Novo Nordisk.
The company is providing a month’s supply of this weight loss medication at a price of $199, significantly lower than Ozempic’s approximate $1,000 list price and Wegovy’s $1,349 cost.
The scarcity of these highly sought-after and expensive brand-name drugs has led several telehealth platforms to utilize a provision in the Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act, which permits the sale of compounded versions of medications that are in short supply.
Compounding refers to the customization of an approved drug by a licensed pharmacist or physician to meet individual patient needs.
Generally, the Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act restricts the compounding of drugs that replicate commercially available medications. However, medications deemed as shortages by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) are not classified as commercially available.
In an interview with Bloomberg on Monday, Schultz indicated that the company sees a “long future” in the sale of compounded semaglutide.
When questioned about whether pharmacies could continue to produce compounded semaglutide once the shortages are resolved, Schultz expressed confidence that there would still be situations requiring individualized prescriptions.