Novo Nordisk ends Hims & Hers tie-up over copycat Wegovy drugs

Unlock the Editor’s Digest for freeRoula Khalaf, Editor of the FT, selects her favorite tales on this weekly publication.Novo Nordisk has terminated its partnership with US telehealth group Hims & Hers after accusing it of deceptively advertising copycat variations of its blockbuster Wegovy weight reduction drug, sending shares in each firms down sharply.The Danish pharmaceutical group mentioned on Monday it had ended a collaboration with Hims & Hers Well being, introduced in April, to distribute Wegovy. Hims & Hers shares tumbled practically 30 per cent on the information, though they continue to be up 74 per cent for the reason that begin of the yr. Novo shares fell as a lot as 7 per cent.The dispute pertains to the apply of “compounding” — the preparation of custom-made medicine utilizing energetic substances that replicate these in patented medicines however are sourced elsewhere. Compounded variations of weight problems and diabetes medicine flourished within the US when the Meals and Drug Administration allowed pharmacies to make them following its 2022 declaration of official shortages of Novo’s Wegovy and Ozempic in addition to rival Eli Lilly’s Zepbound. Novo started collaborating with Hims & Hers and different telehealth firms to spice up Wegovy gross sales as soon as the FDA declared the shortages over earlier this yr, placing pharmacies on discover to cease promoting compounded variations. Novo claimed Hims & Hers had did not observe legal guidelines prohibiting mass gross sales of compounded medicine “below the false guise of ‘personalisation’,” and accused the corporate of “disseminating misleading advertising that put affected person security in danger”.“Novo Nordisk is agency on our place and defending sufferers residing with weight problems,” mentioned Dave Moore, govt vice-president of the corporate’s US operations. “We are going to work with telehealth firms to offer direct entry to Wegovy that share our dedication to affected person security.”Hims & Hers didn’t instantly reply to a request for remark.The US firm, whose inventory has soared over the previous yr because it benefited from the booming US weight problems therapy market, introduced this month that it had purchased London-based telehealth rival Zava and signalled that it was exploring providing duplicate weight-loss remedies within the UK and Europe.Novo’s spat with Hims & Hers is the most recent blow for the Danish firm, and comes after the abrupt exit of chief govt Lars Fruergaard Jørgensen in Might. The collapse of the Hims & Hers deal dents its technique of utilizing telehealth firms to assist enhance Wegovy gross sales and allay investor fears it’s shedding market share to Lilly. Shareholders are additionally involved that Novo’s pipeline of latest medicine will not be as sturdy as its opponents’. Novo’s shares have fallen greater than half over the previous yr. At this month’s American Diabetes Affiliation convention Novo revealed promising early outcomes from trials of a brand new weight problems drug, amycretin. It additionally revealed extra detailed information for one more weight problems drug candidate, CagriSema: preliminary trial outcomes revealed on the finish of final yr confirmed it had missed its weight reduction goal, disappointing the market.