Hims & Hers Health Inc., telehealth provider of medications, may need to treat itself for communications whiplash. On Feb. 5, it proudly announced it would begin selling a cheaper knockoff version of Novo Nordisk’s Wegovy anti-obesity pill. Two days later, it withdrew its drug. And then Novo sued the company.

Although San Francisco-based Hims issued a press release for the first announcement, the about-face was relegated to a post on X. The company said it made the withdrawal decision after having “constructive conversations with stakeholders across the industry.” That was it in the way of explanation.

But the news reporting makes clear Hims was — in the words of New York Times reporter Rebecca Robins — “bowing to pressure from federal regulators who suggested the product might be illegal.” Hims is a “compounding pharmacy” that has been offering its own injectable version of the anti-obesity drugs. So, it’s a known entity.

Things had moved quickly. The day after Hims announced its new pill, the U.S. Food & Drug Administration put out a press release saying it “intends to take action against non-FDA-approved GLP-1 drugs,” as the anti-obesity medicines are known. The FDA statement named names — or rather a name — namely, Hims.

Federal Law

Also that day, the general counsel for Health and Human Services wrote on X that he referred the situation to the Department of Justice for an investigation for possible violation of federal law.

Bagsværd, Denmark–based Novo, which released its pill version of Wegovy only in early January, published its own statement against Hims’ copycats. “Hims has engaged in promotional campaigns that highlight its compounded semaglutide products, duping consumers and healthcare professionals as to the clinical benefits and safety of these unapproved drugs,” it wrote.

So, Hims’ new pill was immediately attacked by federal regulators. That’s a crisis! But it didn’t end there.

Despite Hims’ decision to withdraw the product, on Monday (Feb. 9) Novo said it sued Hims in Delaware. It accuses the San Francisco company of breaching — since 2024 — the patent on semaglutide, the active ingredient in Wegovy, according to Bloomberg. The suit also accuses Hims of violating the patent for the injectable versions of Wegovy and its sister anti-diabetes drug, Ozempic.

‘Tipping Point’

Novo issued a release about the lawsuit. More pungently, in a Bloomberg interview its general counsel called Hims’ pill announcement last week “a step too far,” “egregious” and “definitely a tipping point.”

Hims responded to the new litigation with a post on X that said, patriotically and in part, “Novo Nordisk’s lawsuit is a blatant attack by a Danish company on millions of Americans who rely on compounded medications for access to personalized care. Once again, Big Pharma is weaponizing the U.S. judicial system to limit consumer choice.”

Granted, this is a unique situation, but it shows how heated crisis comms can get. Hims, which is publicly traded, needs to do a better job of communicating what it’s doing. It may indeed be a “tipping point” for the company. The stock closed down 16 percent on Monday.

Hims was able to market its own version of the Wegovy injections because there was a shortage of the drug; compounding pharmacies like Hims are allowed to step in and sell products during shortages. The Wegovy scarcity ended last year, and the FDA ordered the compounders to stop, according to The New York Times. Some, including Hims, have continued.

Photo Credit: Hims & Hers

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