$99 Monthly Fee! Hims & Hers Offers Discounts on Wegovy Weight Loss Drug to Specific Industry Patients, Market Shortage Intensifies, Who Will Protect Patient Rights?

Telehealth company Hims & Hers Health (Hims & Hers) announced on Wednesday that it will offer Wegovy, a combination weight loss drug made by Novo Nordisk, to patients in selected industries at a price of $99 per month. Eligible members of the U.S. military, teachers, nurses, first responders (including police officers and firefighters), and veterans are eligible for the discounted rate. Hims & Hers says on its website that it is offering cimarlutide injections for $199 per month for patients on a 12-month plan.

Earlier, U.S. Senator Bernie Sanders noted that multiple generic drug manufacturers have confirmed their ability to sell customized versions of Novo's drugs for less than $100 a month. A surge in demand for GLP-1 weight loss drugs, which are produced by pharmaceutical companies under U.S. regulations, has led to a shortage of the drugs. Studies have shown that GLP-1 weight-loss drugs can help patients lose an average of 20 percent of their weight.

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), about 70 percent of American adults are overweight or obese.

Ozempic and Wegovy's official websites show a one-month supply of the drugs priced at $935.77 and $1,349.02, respectively. Most American patients have health insurance, so they are likely to buy drugs at a lower cost.

Novo Nordisk and rival Eli Lilly have filed a series of lawsuits against medical spas, health clinics and compounding pharmacies for selling products that claim to contain active ingredients in their drugs. Eli Lilly is the maker of the weight loss drug Zepbound.

Hims & Hers Inc. states that the compound GLP-1 injections are manufactured and distributed by its affiliated pharmacies and are regulated by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA).

Andrew Dudum, CEO and co-founder of Hims & Hers, said: "The current supply of weight loss drugs on the market does not meet all the patients who need them." "Safe and affordable healthcare solutions for everyone should be the norm in our society," he stressed.