Latest news with #MichaelSiluk
Vox
17-05-2025
- Health
- Vox
How the US turned the tide on drug overdose deaths
is an editorial director at Vox overseeing the climate, tech, and world teams, and is the editor of Vox's Future Perfect section. He worked at Time magazine for 15 years as a foreign correspondent in Asia, a climate writer, and an international editor, and he wrote a book on existential risk. The Trump administration has proposed major cuts to naloxone distribution, which could take the most potent tool for stopping overdose deaths out of the hands of those who need it most. Michael Siluk/UCG/Universal Images Group via Getty Images In 2020 and 2021, before I came to Vox, I worked as the future correspondent at Axios — yes, that was the actual job title — and I found myself writing almost solely about the Covid-19 pandemic, or major trends that appeared to be driven by the pandemic. One of those trends was an alarming rise in drug overdose deaths. The trajectory was already bad before Covid: Between the widespread prescription and misuse of legal opioids and then the introduction of the ultra-powerful drug fentanyl to the illicit drug supply, overdose deaths in the US began taking off in the early 2010s. But the closure of treatment facilities during the pandemic and the isolation of users led to a sudden spike in deaths: In the year leading up to September 2020, as I wrote in April 2021, more than 87,000 Americans died of drug overdoses, a higher total than any 12-month period of the opioid epidemic up to that point. Despair, and then hope After publishing that piece, I received a letter from a reader, who said her son had been one of those 87,000 deaths. She begged me to give this issue more coverage, to remind my readers that behind the Covid pandemic, there was a shadow epidemic of drug deaths, of lost sons and daughters and husbands and wives. People had to stop closing their eyes to the toll of death and pain. In the years that followed, the toll only continued to grow, however, with deaths reaching 110,000 in 2023. There seemed to be no answer for one of the worst public health crises in a generation. But now, at long last, we finally appear to be turning the corner on the drug overdose crisis. Provisional figures from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's National Vital Statistics System released this week show that some 27,000 fewer Americans died of a drug overdose in 2024 than in 2023. That year-on-year drop is the steepest single-year decline since the government first began keeping track of overdose deaths 45 years ago. It means that drug deaths are now finally coming back down to pre-pandemic levels — and that we can make progress on what can seem like the most intractable social ills. 27,000 lives To put that 27,000 drop in deaths into perspective, think of it this way: It adds up to three lives saved every hour for an entire year. What's remarkable about the rapid drop in overdose deaths is just how widespread the trend is. Forty-five states recorded declines in deaths, with Ohio and West Virginia — two states that have suffered more than almost any other from the opioid epidemic — leading the way. Only a handful of states, mostly in the Northwest, where the epidemic started later, experienced increases. While synthetic opioids, which mostly means fentanyl, are still responsible for the vast majority of overdose deaths, deaths from such drugs are falling faster than any other, declining by 36 percent year over year. Reversing the overdose epidemic One of the biggest factors behind the decline is the growing availability of naloxone, an opioid antagonist. If administered in the immediate aftermath of an overdose, naloxone has been shown to be close to 99 percent effective in preventing death. The key is speed — even the fastest emergency medical responders may not make it to the scene in time to save someone suffering an overdose. But recent policies to make naloxone available over the counter, and to advise users to have it on hand, have made it possible to bring back thousands of people who otherwise would have died. While the pandemic directly led to a significant spike in overdose deaths, policies that came out of Covid have helped curb the toll, including telehealth access to medicine-based treatment options for addiction like buprenorphine. All of these programs have been paid for in part by the billions of dollars in opioid-settlement cash from drug companies like Johnson & Johnson, which began flowing to state and local governments in 2024. Tougher enforcement on fentanyl has played a role as well. Lastly — and less positively — the sheer number of overdose deaths in the past few years has depleted the number of people at highest risk. Like an infectious disease epidemic that slows down as it begins to run out of new people to infect, the overdose epidemic burned so hot and killed so many that drug users who were left were less vulnerable to fatal overdoses. What comes next The news isn't all good. While synthetic opioids like fentanyl appear to be in a steep decline, deaths actually rose last year from stimulants like meth and cocaine, with production of the latter surging to new highs. The increase in deaths in a handful of states like Alaska and Washington demonstrates that in some parts of the country, at least, there are still populations that remain highly vulnerable to fatal overdoses. Most worryingly, the Trump administration's draft budget proposes major cuts to naloxone distribution, which could take the most potent tool for stopping overdose deaths out of the hands of those who need it most. Still, we should recognize this new data for what it is — evidence that, with effort, we can reverse the course of one of the biggest public health threats the US faces. Thousands of people are alive today who, if nothing had changed since I was writing about this epidemic in 2021, might have suffered a worse fate. Drug addiction is a horrible disease that can destroy futures, families, and lives. But where there is life, there is hope. Every overdose victim brought back by a spray of naloxone has another chance to change their future, and ensure that they won't become another statistic. A version of this story originally appeared in the Good News newsletter. Sign up here!
Forbes
02-05-2025
- Business
- Forbes
How Will HIMS Stock React To Its Upcoming Earnings?
Photo illustration of Wegovy and a weight scale. Wegovy is an injectable prescription weight loss ... More medicine that has helped people with obesity. It should be used with a weight loss plan and physical activity. (Photo by: Michael Siluk/UCG/Universal Images Group via Getty Images) Hims & Hers Health (NYSE:HIMS) is set to release its earnings report on Monday, May 5, 2025. Historically, the stock has displayed considerable volatility around its earnings announcements. In the past five years, it has recorded a negative one-day return following earnings in 56% of instances, with a median negative return of -5.8% and a maximum negative return of -22.3%. This upcoming earnings report is especially significant, as analysts project earnings per share of $0.23 on revenue of $538.4 million. These projections indicate nearly a two-fold increase compared to the earnings of $0.10 per share on revenue of $278.2 million reported in the same quarter last year. The company has been witnessing robust customer growth, and this trend is likely to continue. For event-driven traders, grasping these historical patterns might provide a potential advantage, although the actual market reaction will largely hinge on how the reported results align with consensus estimates and overall market expectations. There are typically two strategies to consider: either positioning oneself prior to the earnings release based on historical probabilities, or evaluating the relationship between immediate and medium-term returns post-announcement to guide future trades. From a fundamental viewpoint, Hims presently boasts a market capitalization of $7.7 billion. Its revenue over the trailing twelve months is $1.5 billion, and the company has shown operational profitability with $62 million in operating profits and a net income of $126 million. That said, if you are looking for potential gains with less volatility than individual stocks, the Trefis High Quality portfolio offers an alternative – having outperformed the S&P 500 and generated returns exceeding 91% since its launch. See earnings reaction history of all stocks Some insights on one-day (1D) post-earnings returns: Additional information on observed 5-Day (5D) and 21-Day (21D) returns post earnings is summarized alongside the statistics in the table below. HIMS 1D, 5D, and 21D Post Earnings Return A strategy with comparatively lower risk (though less useful if the correlation is weak) is to comprehend the correlation between short-term and medium-term returns post earnings, identify a pair that exhibits the highest correlation, and perform the necessary trade. For instance, if 1D and 5D show the strongest correlation, a trader may position themselves 'long' for the next 5 days if the 1D post-earnings return is positive. Here is some correlation data based on 5-year and 3-year (more recent) history. Note that the correlation 1D_5D refers to the relationship between 1D post-earnings returns and subsequent 5D returns. HIMS Correlation Between 1D, 5D and 21D Historical Returns Discover more about Trefis RV strategy that has outperformed its all-cap stocks benchmark (a combination of all 3, the S&P 500, S&P mid-cap, and Russell 2000), delivering strong returns to investors. Additionally, if you are seeking upside with a smoother experience than an individual stock like Hims & Hers Health, consider the High Quality portfolio, which has outperformed the S&P and achieved >91% returns since inception.
Forbes
01-05-2025
- Health
- Forbes
Novo Nordisk Forges Multiple Partnerships To Sell Wegovy At A Discount
The pharmaceutical firm Novo Nordisk is pursuing a multi-pronged strategy to regain market share ... More that it has lost to Eli Lilly in the lucrative obesity drug market. One of its weight loss products, Wegovy (semaglutide), is an injectable prescription medicine. It should be used with a weight loss plan and (increased) physical activity. (Photo by: Michael Siluk/UCG/Universal Images Group via Getty Images) The pharmaceutical firm Novo Nordisk is pursuing a multi-pronged strategy to regain market share that it has lost to Eli Lilly in the lucrative obesity drug market. On Thursday, Novo Nordisk announced a new partnership with the conglomerate, CVS Health Corporation, which gives the weight loss drug Wegovy a preferred coverage status over its competitor Zepbound for customers who are insured for obesity medications. And at the same time, Novo Nordisk struck a deal in which CVS pharmacy will offer Wegovy at a discount for cash-paying customers who aren't insured for the medication. This move follows another collaboration forged between Novo Nordisk and the telehealth company Hims & Hers Health to offer discounted Wegovy. Additionally, the drug maker sells weight loss products to customers via its NovoCare Pharmacy program for a reduced price. Glucagon-like peptide-1 medications such as semaglutide (Ozempic, Wegovy) and tirzepatide (Mounjaro, Zepbound) were in shortage starting in 2022. The Food and Drug Administration declared the shortages over for tirzepatide and semaglutide this past winter. But between 2022 and this year, compounded versions of these medications had sometimes become a more accessible and affordable option for patients. Compounded products containing the same active ingredients fill a void if and when the branded medications are in scarce supply. Telehealth platforms, such as Hims & Hers, connect patients seeking treatments, which include compounded medications, to licensed healthcare providers, who perform virtual evaluations and prescribe medications if they deem them appropriate. Hims & Hers and other similar companies could offer patients compounded GLP-1s for far less money than the branded products. This posed a particular challenge to Novo Nordisk's sales of its weight loss therapeutics, as did competition from Eli Lilly's Zepbound, a GIP and GLP-1 receptor, which performed better than Wegovy in terms of its ability to lower weight. Now that the shortages are resolved, compounded GLP-1s are mostly being phased out, though the practice of compounding can still help in unusual circumstances in which custom-tailoring is indicated. For the most patients, it's out with compounded GLP-1s for weight loss and in with discounted branded drugs. In the wake of the removal of semaglutide and tirzepatide from the FDA's shortage list, the business model of selling directly to the consumer has become popular for the two main manufacturers of obesity drugs. Here, the patient often pays a discounted amount for the branded medicine. In 2024, Eli Lilly adopted a direct-to-consumer strategy for Zepbound, among other products, with its LillyDirect service. This service includes a DTC pharmacy and a referral network of in-person and telehealth clinicians. And LillyDirect allows uninsured or under-insured individuals not on Medicaid or Medicare to purchase Zepbound product directly after obtaining the requisite prescription from their doctor. The firm recently extended the range of Zepbound products available through LillyDirect with the addition of high-dose vials at $499. Rival Novo Nordisk also launched a DTC option, NovoCare Pharmacy, two months ago. Patients not insured in the public sector who wish to have access to Wegovy can acquire the drug for an out-of-pocket cost of $499 per month, provided they have a prescription and make use of the designated specialty pharmacy. This is the same amount customers pay when they access Wegovy from Hims & Hers. And now, following the agreement with CVS, cash-paying customers without weight loss drug coverage will be able to buy Wegovy for $499 per month at the pharmacy. In addition, for insured patients, CVS Caremark, the nation's largest pharmacy benefit manager, said that starting in July, the weight loss treatments Wegovy and Saxenda (liraglutide) will be the preferred GLP-1 medicines on its largest commercial formularies. It's unknown precisely what this implies in terms of out-of-pocket costs for patients. But generally patients with coverage for obesity drugs have monthly cost-sharing under $100. Notably, Zepbound will no longer be preferred and may even be excluded on certain formularies.
Forbes
29-04-2025
- Business
- Forbes
Humana's CenterWell Expands Specialty Pharmacy As GLP-1 Drugs Take Off
Humana's CenterWell healthcare services business Tuesday said it would expand beyond its traditional ... More home-delivery pharmacy services business and will begin filling and shipping orders for the popular GLP-1 weight loss drug Wegovy that are prescribed through three telehealth companies: Hims & Hers Health, Inc., LifeMD and Ro. In this photo are images of Novo Nordisk's Wegovy, an injectable prescription weight loss medicine that has helped people with obesity. (Photo by: Michael Siluk/UCG/Universal Images Group via Getty Images) Humana is the latest health insurer to expand into the fast-growing and lucrative business of direct-to-patient specialty pharmacy as demand grows for popular GLP-1 weight loss drugs. Humana's CenterWell healthcare services business Tuesday said it would expand beyond its traditional home-delivery pharmacy services business and will begin filling and shipping orders for the popular GLP-1 weight loss drug Wegovy that are prescribed through three telehealth companies: Hims & Hers Health, Inc., LifeMD and Ro. The partnership was disclosed by Humana and Novo Nordisk that CenterWell Pharmacy will be its fulfillment partner for NovoCare, a pharmacy the drug maker launched a month ago to provide 'direct-to-patient, convenient home shipments of all dose strengths of Wegovy at a reduced cost of $499 per month for cash-paying patients,' Novo Nordisk said last month. CenterWell pharmacy's partnership with Novo Nordisk is directed at cash-paying consumers, or what the industry calls 'self-pay' patients, who don't have health insurance coverage for anti-obesity drugs, which are dropping in price but even with discounts cost several hundred dollars an injection. 'Under the arrangement, CenterWell is helping consumers benefit from reduced cost and convenient access to safe and effective brand-name medications,' CenterWell pharmacy senior vice president Guillermo Sollberger said in a statement released during the annual at Asembia ASX25, which draws more than 8,000 companies tied to the specialty pharmacy industry this week to Las Vegas. The partnership also comes in the wake of the Trump White House's decision earlier this month to scrap a Biden administration proposal to have Medicare health plans for seniors and Medicaid insurance for low-income Americans cover weight loss drugs such as Novo Nordisk's Wegovy. CenterWell and Novo Nordisk see 'direct-to-patient' partnerships as a way to expand access to those without health insurance coverage for certain prescriptions. Novocare follows a similar effort launched last year called LillyDirect, a direct-to-patient effort from Eli Lilly, maker of the GLP-1 drug Zepbound. 'NovoCare Pharmacy is a direct-to-patient delivery option that offers cash-paying patients the GLP-1 medication, Wegovy, at a reduced cost of $499 per month,' Sollberger said. 'Under the arrangement, CenterWell is helping consumers benefit from reduced cost and convenient access to safe and effective brand-name medications.' It's the latest health insurer to expand deeper into specialty pharmacy. Already, UnitedHealth Group's OptumRx and CVS Health, which owns the health insurer Aetna, have expanded more into specialty pharmacy. Optum, for example, has 15 Optum Specialty Pharmacies and two 'Optum Frontier Therapies' that the company says help patients with rare and complex conditions, helping them access more than 200 specialty drugs. And Cigna, which owns Evernorth health services, has expanded its Accredo Specialty Pharmacy since it was part of the company's 2018 Express Scripts purchase and today serves 900,000 patients and ships 7 million prescriptions annually. Meanwhile, And a year ago, Elevance Health, which operates Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield plans, a year ago bought the grocery chain Kroger's specialty pharmacy and the year before bought BioPlus. Eventually, drug makers and pharmacies see direct-to-patient models emerging for other new medicines, particularly as technology advances like telehealth that allows Americans to more easily obtain prescription drugs. 'Direct-to-patient distribution models like this are likely to evolve beyond GLP-1s to include other medication categories like migraine therapies and women's/men's health,' CenterWell's Sollberger said. 'CenterWell Pharmacy is well positioned to scale such programs, with the agility to meet the needs of this growing market.'
Forbes
20-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Forbes
Trader Joe's Tote Bags And The All-Powerful Resale Market
A Trader Joe's storefront in Shoreview, Minnesota. (Photo by: Michael Siluk/UCG/Universal Images Group via Getty Images) With lines wrapped around the building and patient patrons peeking through the doors, last week, Trader Joe's stores all over the country were swarmed with shoppers eager to get their hands on the grocery chain's newest merchandise release: mini pastel canvas tote bags. A shrunken down iteration of the store's iconized logo-adorned tote bag, the limited edition item, available in four spring-themed shades and retailing from Trader Joe's stores at $2.99 a piece, caused an uproar among consumers as the tote quickly flew off the shelves and onto the internet—now sold exclusively by online resellers at egregious prices. As the resale market continues to grow, shoppers are revealing their growing frustrations on social media as exclusive items at previously affordable price points, such as the Trader Joe's mini tote bags, become less accessible to the average consumer. With the original video garnering over 2.5 million views, a TikTok posted by Angela Ahmadi Angoory under the username @angelaahmadi captured what the experience was like while trying to purchase the tote bag at her local Trader Joe's in Atlanta. As the camera panned over the crowded interior of the Trader Joe's store, several individuals could be seen pushing carts overflowing with tote bags—obvious to other shoppers that they were planning on reselling. Angoory commented on these individuals in an interview, saying, 'I spotted two resellers with carts full of tote bags, and in the background, I saw others grabbing armfuls. I mean, when you're filling your cart like that, it's pretty obvious you're a reseller! Since I didn't engage with them directly, I can't speak to their demeanor while they were grabbing bags, but the whole situation was definitely a frenzy.' While Angoory didn't experience any direct contact with those stocking up on the limited edition item, a common complaint amongst those who resent the collective reseller is their lack of respect for other shoppers—with examples of negligent behavior ranging from clearing out a store's product inventory to disrespecting the physical boundaries of other individuals. 'Personally, I think resellers can make the shopping experience feel chaotic...' said Angoory. 'I can see how frustrating it must be for people who just want one or two totes and end up empty-handed because of resellers.' While resellers are often mocked online for their history of price gouging and crafting exaggerated descriptions, the practice—as with similar side hustles—has become a lucrative stream of income comparable to a full-time career for many individuals. In addition to independent websites and dedicated social media pages, one of the most popular platforms to resell clothing and accessories is Depop. According to the platform's own promotional materials, Depop is 'a circular fashion marketplace where anyone can buy, sell and discover desirable, affordable secondhand fashion.' With an easy to operate user interface and complete independence over one's storefront, users are given the opportunity to not only sell goods, but gain popularity amongst users. In an interview, Depop reiterated this point, saying, 'Anyone can set up a shop in minutes and find an audience—we're seeing thousands of young entrepreneurs building brands and doing what they love.' However, because of the platform's independent storefront model, Depop has limited regulations in place to monitor issues such as price gouging on hard to come by products. In the same interview, Depop addressed these concerns, saying 'We have tools in place to help steer our sellers on how to price an item. However, each of our sellers is a small business owner and, as long as they comply with Depop's T&S policies, they are able to assess the marketplace and demand for their items at free will.' Depop continued, embracing storefront independence as part of the platform's charm, saying, 'We see this as a positive and in many cases, those items sell very quickly if the demand is there. Our sellers know that it's in their interest to price reasonably. Ultimately, market forces will dictate the ability of a seller to sell at any given price—some items do command a premium based on either rarity or demand.' So while many offerings on Depop and similar resale platforms are marked appropriately according to shoppers, if the demand for a product is there, prices will inevitably rise. This—especially considering the unwaveringly high price points set for Trader Joe's mini pastel canvas tote bags online—begs the question why the demand for the store's pastel-adorned shrunken totes is so great. Like many other sought-after clothing and accessory products that have come before it, the item in question exhibits three main qualities that make the perfect piece to resell: exclusivity, brand-alignment and virality. Adorned in the grocery chain's iconized logo and available in a selection of pastel tones for a limited time only, the mini tote bags have major appeal to buyers looking for exclusive items that convey a level of 'in the know' status to others. Additionally, the totes have gone semi-viral on social media, with fashion-based creators showing off the bags among their new purchases and DIY-enthusiasts using the bag as a canvas for painting, sewing and embroidering. As commerce evolves and reselling becomes more heavily integrated into the consumer landscape, shoppers will have to use a level of discernment to determine what items are worth purchasing from online resellers—with Trader Joe's tote bags serving as just one example in the flood of similar merchandize yet to come.
