Hims & Hers, a telehealth platform targeting 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, renowned for its diabetes and obesity treatments, where he held various positions including president and chief operating officer. He is currently serving 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 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 stock rose by 3% during Monday morning trading, with shares increasing by 125% since the start of the year.
This news comes shortly after Hims & Hers began providing a compounded version of semaglutide, the active ingredient in renowned diabetes and weight loss medications Ozempic and Wegovy, which are produced by Novo Nordisk. Hims & Hers offers a month’s supply of the weight loss drug for $199, significantly lower than Ozempic’s price of nearly $1,000 and Wegovy’s $1,349 price tag.
The scarcity of these highly sought-after and costly brand name drugs has led several telehealth platforms to utilize a provision of the Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act that permits the sale of compounded versions of medications experiencing shortages. Compounding involves customizing an approved drug by a licensed pharmacist or physician to cater to the needs of individual patients.
Although the Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act generally restricts compounding drugs that are mere copies of commercially available medications, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) does not classify drugs in shortage as commercially available.
Schultz informed Bloomberg on Monday that the company envisions a “long future” in the sale of compounded semaglutide. When asked about the continued ability of pharmacies to produce compounded semaglutide once shortages are resolved, Schultz expressed confidence, noting that there would still be instances where patients require personalized prescriptions.