Telehealth platforms are becoming a gateway for access to blockbuster weight loss medicines.
That shift became clearer on Monday after Novo Nordisk dropped its patent infringement lawsuit against digital health provider Hims & Hers.
The Danish pharmaceutical company has instead agreed to allow Hims to distribute its branded semaglutide drugs through its telehealth platform.
The move ends a dispute over copycat versions of the obesity drug Wegovy and highlights how drugmakers are increasingly working with online health platforms to reach patients seeking treatments for obesity.
Legal fight replaced by distribution deal
Novo Nordisk confirmed it has withdrawn the legal case it had filed against Hims over alleged patent infringement linked to compounded versions of semaglutide.
Chief executive Mike Doustdar said on Monday the company had decided to drop the court proceedings while reserving the right to revive them if necessary.
Under the agreement, Hims will offer Novo Nordisk’s injectable and oral semaglutide medicines on its platform, including Ozempic and Wegovy.
The treatments will be available at the same price offered through other telehealth platforms.
Hims has also agreed to stop advertising compounded GLP-1 drugs through its platform or marketing materials.
Shares of Hims surged as much as 50% in premarket trading, while Novo Nordisk’s Copenhagen-listed stock rose 1.7%.
Copycat drugs triggered earlier dispute
The conflict between the companies escalated earlier this year as demand for semaglutide medicines surged.
In February, Novo Nordisk said it planned to sue Hims over what it described as mass illegal compounding after the telehealth company introduced a copycat version of the Wegovy pill.
Hims had announced the product at a price of $49, roughly $100 lower than Novo Nordisk’s branded version sold through its direct to consumer platform, NovoCare.
The company withdrew the pill after backlash from Novo and warnings from the US Food and Drug Administration.
The regulator said it would take action against compounding pharmacies offering such products.
Shortage loophole fuelled copycat sales
Hims had generated significant revenue from selling compounded semaglutide using a regulatory loophole in US law.
The rule allows companies other than the patent holder to produce a drug when the medicine is officially listed as being in shortage.
Semaglutide experienced supply shortages during the early stages of the weight loss drug boom.
Novo Nordisk has since expanded manufacturing and said it has resolved those supply constraints.
Despite that, Hims had continued offering compounded versions, arguing the treatments were personalised prescriptions and therefore legally permitted.
Semaglutide remains protected by US patents until 2031.
Telehealth becomes major drug channel
The companies had briefly worked together before the dispute.
Last year, Novo Nordisk partnered with Hims to offer discounted weight loss injections to users of the telehealth platform.
That collaboration ended after two months when Novo accused Hims of using deceptive marketing practices that could put patient safety at risk.
Novo now reports more than 600,000 prescriptions for the Wegovy pill since its launch in January.
Hims said patients currently using compounded semaglutide will have the opportunity to transition to FDA approved medicines when clinicians determine it is appropriate.
The telehealth provider also said it is speaking with biotechnology firms and pharmaceutical companies that may bring additional therapies to its platform.
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