Hims 85% Wegovy and Ozempic discount is latest step on a journey to make medicine less ‘paternalistic,’ exec says
Traditional medical practices are getting a boost from new entrants seeking to fill gaps in what health industry executives described Monday as an underdeveloped health care system.
That includes Hims & Hers, a direct-to-consumer health company that announced Monday that it will launch a combination version of its weight-loss drugs Wegovy and Ozempic at a starting price of $199 per month, 85% less than the brand-name versions produced by Hims & Hers. Novo Nordisk. The two are among a group of GLP-1 drugs that are approved to treat diabetes but have become very popular for weight loss.
Dr. Patrick Carroll, Hims & Hers' chief medical officer, said the move comes as the company focuses on personalization and customer choice in an effort to improve what has traditionally been a “patriarchal” medical system. luckHealth Brainstorming Conference.
In the past, doctors dictated many aspects of a person's health, which does not fit well with the freedom of choice patients expect from their health care today, Dr. Carroll said.
“You're not going to get through this $4.5 trillion health care mess with traditional models of care,” he said.
Hims & Hers is adapting to the modern patient by publishing content about symptoms to educate people and help bring them to the company's platform. In this way, the company seeks to reach those who use Google or social media as a first resource for medical issues.
“It's very different than it was 20 years ago, or even 10 years ago, but this is the model of the future,” Carroll said. “People are looking for answers online.”
Although Carroll acknowledged that the company's new product's $199 price tag is still steep for some customers, he emphasized that Hims & Hers' new weight loss drug GLP-1 uses the same active ingredient as the brand's drugs, and credits This is due in part to its partnership with an unnamed generic manufacturer.
Hims & Hers' efforts to bring a weight-loss drug to market reflect growing demand for brand versions that has prompted Novo Nordisk and other producers like Eli Lilly to expand manufacturing.
Although Wegovy and Ozempic are protected by patents, US regulators allow pharmacies to manufacture them Compound versions It is a drug that is in short supply, but the Food and Drug Administration does not test versions of drugs made on site for safety. In January statementThe agency warns against people using compounded forms of weight-loss drugs when FDA-approved versions are available.
However, compounded versions of weight-loss drugs have gained traction with consumers as a supply of brand-name versions Limited.
