Hims & Hers, a telehealth platform catering to millennials, announced on Monday the appointment of Kåre Schultz, a seasoned executive from Novo Nordisk, to its board of directors.
Schultz has spent over 25 years at Novo Nordisk, a Danish pharmaceutical company renowned for its treatments for diabetes and obesity, where he held various roles including president and chief operating officer. Currently, he serves as the CEO of Teva Pharmaceutical.
In a press release, Schultz expressed his enthusiasm for joining Hims & Hers, stating, “Hims & Hers is on a trajectory to upend the healthcare industry. 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 stocks rose 3%, and the shares have increased by 125% since the start of the year.
This development comes just a few months after Hims & Hers began offering a compounded version of semaglutide, the active ingredient in the well-known medications Ozempic and Wegovy, both produced by Novo Nordisk. Hims & Hers sells a month’s supply of this weight loss medication for $199, significantly lower than Ozempic’s approximately $1,000 price tag and Wegovy’s $1,349.
The scarcity of these highly sought-after brand-name drugs has prompted numerous telehealth platforms to utilize a provision in the Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act, which allows for the sale of compounded medications that are currently in short supply. Compounding involves customizing an approved medication by a licensed pharmacist or physician to suit the specific needs of individual patients.
Normally, the Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act prohibits compounding drugs that simply replicate commercially available medications. However, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) does not consider drugs in shortage to be commercially available.
In an interview with Bloomberg on Monday, Schultz affirmed the company’s plans for a “long future” in the compounded semaglutide market. When asked whether pharmacies would continue to offer compounded semaglutide after shortages are resolved, Schultz expressed confidence, noting that there would still be instances where patients require individualized prescriptions.