By Freddy Sebastian and Rob Curran

Him & Hers Health and Novo Nordisk are collaborating to offer weight-loss treatment, including access to Wegovy along with other services to treat obesity.

In a joint venture with Novo Nordisk, Hims & Hers will dispense all doses of Wegovy to Americans who buy eligible subscriptions, with plans starting at $599 a month. The offering will launch this week, the company said.

Consumers will be able to access NovoCare Pharmacy through Him & Hers' platform as well as clinical support, nutrition guidance and a membership, the companies said in a statement Tuesday.

Shares of the online pharmacy surged 34% to $38.25 premarket, but remain below February peaks. Novo Nordisk rose 4% to $65.10.

The deal ratchets up competition in the weight-loss drug market, with Novo and rival Eli Lilly seeking telehealth partners to reach more customers. Telehealth provider Ro in late 2024 began selling Lilly's weight-loss drug Zepbound and promotes it heavily in TV ads.

Glucagon-like Peptide receptor agonists, also known as GLP-1 drugs, are a blockbuster category of drugs that some industry analysts say will eventually be one of the top-selling kinds of pharmaceuticals ever. The GLP-1 products, including Novo Nordisk's Wegovy and Ozempic, have shown efficacy in the treatment of diabetes and in weight reduction, among other applications. Hims & Hers had previously sold compound-pharmacy versions of the drugs under a special arrangement due to shortages.

Both Novo and Lilly are providing their weight-loss drugs at discounted cash prices through the telehealth services, primarily for people who don't have insurance coverage of the drugs.

Lilly and Novo also are trying to squelch competition from lower-cost, knockoff versions of their weight-loss drugs sold by compounding pharmacies. The manufacturers have taken legal action against pharmacies and telehealth services that sell compounded versions, and the Food and Drug Administration has said sales of the copies should be limited now that Lilly and Novo have resolved supply shortages for the original brands.

Medical professionals have raised concerns about the ease of drug access with online pharmacies, and about potential risks associated with use of GLP-1s.

"We share a vision of what consumer-centered healthcare looks like, and this is just the first step towards delivering that future," said Andrew Dudum, chief executive and founder of Hims & Hers.

"Beyond this initial collaboration, the companies are developing a roadmap that combines Novo Nordisk's innovative medications with Hims & Hers ability to deliver access to quality care at scale, with the goal of improving long-term outcomes for more people living with chronic disease, and doing that more affordably," said Dave Moore, executive vice president of U.S. operations and global business development and president of Novo Nordisk.

Write to Freddy Sebastian at freddy.sebastian@wsj.com and Rob Curran at rob.curran@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

April 29, 2025 09:12 ET (13:12 GMT)

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