Hims & Hers, a telehealth platform targeting millennials, announced on Monday the addition of Kåre Schultz, a veteran executive from Novo Nordisk, to its board of directors.
Schultz has over 25 years of experience at Novo Nordisk, a renowned pharmaceutical company recognized for its diabetes and obesity treatments, where he held various roles, including president and chief operating officer. He currently serves as the CEO of Teva Pharmaceutical.
“Hims & Hers is on a trajectory to upend the healthcare industry,” Schultz stated in a press release. “In my long career in the pharmaceutical industry, 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 its stock increase by 3% during morning trading, marking a 125% rise since the start of the year.
This news arrives shortly after Hims & Hers began offering a compounded version of semaglutide, the active ingredient found in well-known diabetes and weight loss medications Ozempic and Wegovy, both manufactured by Novo Nordisk. The telehealth platform is providing a month’s supply of this weight loss treatment for $199, significantly less expensive than Ozempic’s list price of nearly $1,000 and Wegovy’s price of $1,349.
The limited availability of these sought-after brand-name drugs has led several telehealth companies to utilize a provision in the Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act, which permits the sale of compounded medications that are currently in shortage.
Compounding involves customizing an approved medication by a licensed pharmacist or physician to meet the specific needs of individual patients. While the Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act generally prohibits the compounding of drugs that are identical to commercially available medications, the FDA does not classify drugs in shortage as commercially available.
In a conversation with Bloomberg, Schultz expressed confidence in the company’s long-term prospects for marketing compounded semaglutide. He also indicated that he remains optimistic about the continued ability of pharmacies to produce compounded semaglutide even after current shortages are resolved, stating that there will always be situations requiring personalized prescriptions.