Hims & Hers, a telehealth platform catering to millennials, announced on Monday the addition of Kåre Schultz, a former executive at Novo Nordisk, to its board of directors.
Schultz brings over 25 years of experience from the Danish pharmaceutical company, which is known for its diabetes and obesity treatments, where he held positions including president and chief operating officer. He currently serves as the CEO of Teva Pharmaceutical.
In a press release, Schultz praised Hims & Hers for its innovative approach to healthcare. “Hims & Hers is on a trajectory to upend the healthcare industry,” he stated. “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.”
The announcement had a positive impact on Hims & Hers’ stock, which saw a 3% increase during morning trading and has risen 125% since the start of the year.
This development follows Hims & Hers’ recent offering of a compounded version of semaglutide, the active ingredient in the widely-used diabetes and weight loss medications Ozempic and Wegovy, produced by Novo Nordisk. The company sells a month’s supply of the weight loss medication for $199, significantly more affordable compared to Ozempic’s list price of nearly $1,000 and Wegovy’s $1,349.
The shortage of these popular and expensive brand-name drugs has led several telehealth platforms to utilize a provision in the Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act that allows for the sale of compounded medications that are in short supply. Compounding involves customizing an approved drug by a state-licensed pharmacist or physician to address the specific needs of individual patients.
While the Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act generally prohibits the compounding of drugs that are merely replicas of commercially available medications, those considered to be in shortage are not classified as commercially available by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA).
Schultz indicated to Bloomberg on Monday that Hims & Hers has a “long future” in the sale of compounded semaglutide. When questioned about the potential for pharmacies to still produce compounded semaglutide after shortages are resolved, Schultz expressed confidence that there would continue to be cases requiring individualized prescriptions.