Hims to cut 4% of workforce amid ban on weight-loss drug copies
NEW YORK, May 30 (Reuters) - Telehealth platform Hims & Hers (HIMS.N), opens new tab will cut 68 employees, or about 4% of its workforce, as it adjusts to a U.S. ban on manufacturing mass copies of the weight-loss drug Wegovy.
A U.S. Food and Drug Administration ban on compounded copies of Wegovy, made by Novo Nordisk (NOVOb.CO), opens new tab, took effect on May 22. Hims shares have since dropped 14%. The company confirmed the job cuts in a statement on Friday. On Saturday, it said that the reductions were not related to the compounding ban. Hims did not provide details about the roles that were cut, but said they were implemented across teams. "These changes are focused on sharpening how we execute, without affecting our priorities or the specialties we're committed to," a company spokesperson said regarding the layoffs. Hims still plans to hire for roles related to its long-term growth strategy.
The company recently announced an agreement with Novo to help patients access brand-name Wegovy. It plans to enter the market for low testosterone and menopause treatments and is looking at offerings to improve longevity and sleep.
Bloomberg News reported the job cuts earlier on Friday.
In 2022, the FDA declared a shortage of Wegovy, which has been shown to help patients lose around 15% of their body weight. That declaration allowed compounding pharmacies to produce the drug to meet demand.
Hims began offering copies of Wegovy in 2024, often at far lower prices than the brand-name version. That boosted subscriptions to the Hims telehealth platform, with revenue up 111% on a yearly basis during the first quarter of 2025.
Wegovy copies and similar GLP-1 weight-loss drugs accounted for $200 million of the company's $1.5 billion revenue in 2024.
The FDA in February said Wegovy was no longer in shortage and ended the exception that allowed sale of mass compounded copies of the patented medication.
Hims and its rivals have pivoted to what they say are customized copies of Wegovy that should not be subject to the FDA decision, featuring smaller doses or allowing for a more individualized plan for increasing dosage than offered by Novo.
But analysts said that personalization strategy may not be enough to stave off new legal challenges from Novo.
"It remains to be seen whether HIMS method of personalization (titration and dosage) is enough to meet the compounding clinical exemption need," said Jailendra Singh, a healthcare analyst at Truist.
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