By Madison Muller and Jessica Nix | Bloomberg
In just a few years, Hims & Hers Health Inc. reached almost $1 billion in sales by making it easy to buy cheap, generic versions of popular drugs such as Viagra. Now, it’s using that playbook to jump into the hottest part of health-care: weight-loss shots.
And in typical fashion, a big part of the company’s pitch is the discount. Wegovy, made by Novo Nordisk A/S, costs roughly $1,350 for a month of injections without insurance, and Eli Lilly & Co.’s Zepbound is similarly priced. Hims said it’s offering a treatment with the same active ingredient as Wegovy for $199 a month. That undercuts big pharma by as much as 85%.
This will help customers access these drugs without “navigating the shortages and costs that are currently limiting access to the branded medications,” Hims said in a press release.
Shares of Hims soared as much as 16% on Monday. That came after the stock gained more than 60% this year through last week.
The new, wildly popular shots — often referred to as GLP-1s for mimicking a hormone by that name — are protected by patents until at least 2032. That means generic versions aren’t yet available. But Hims and other telehealth firms have found a workaround: Due to widespread supply shortages in the US, the Food and Drug Administration allows so-called compounding pharmacies to make what are essentially copycat versions of these drugs.
“It’s gonna be a big part of the weight loss category going forward,” Hims Chief Executive Officer Andrew Dudum said in an interview. “Our belief is that compounding can be done very safely, if done correctly.”
Hims and dozens of other telehealth companies have been trying to tap into the insatiable demand for weight-loss drugs. In December, the company began prescribing a suite of drugs off-label for weight loss. That included the diabetes medication metformin and naltrexone, which is approved for alcohol-use disorder.
Those offerings are Hims’ fastest-growing division, and are on track to eclipse $100 million in revenue by next year, according to Dudum.
No one has a clear picture of just how much the compounded weight-loss drug market has grown. The FDA isn’t closely tracking it, neither are state health departments. Yet, compounded medications are not technically approved by the FDA and don’t undergo the same rigorous review for safety, effectiveness or quality as branded and generic medications do.
Ro, another telehealth company that offers weight-loss shots, has also started offering compounded GLP-1s because of the shortages. WW International Inc., better known as WeightWatchers, does not support the use of compounded versions.
Dudum said the drugs will be made at an FDA-licensed facility that he described vaguely as “one of the largest generics manufacturers” in the country. He evaluated more than 100 potential partners before striking a deal with a supplier that offered enough assurances on volume to give him confidence that the company will be able to meet demand.
Hims is far from finished in weight-loss drugs. The company aims to offer compounded tirzepatide, the active ingredient in Lilly’s Mounjaro and Zepbound, in the next couple of months. Dudum also plans to integrate the real, name-brand drugs when adequate supply is available.
Related Articles
Stranded in the ER, seniors await hospital care and suffer avoidable harm
Passenger with measles passes through LAX, those close on plane will be notified
Teen who ate spicy chip died of high chile consumption and had a heart defect, autopsy says
These diets may reduce cancer, heart disease and early death, according to a 20-year review
Medical residents are increasingly avoiding states with abortion restrictions