HIMS, Inc. (Texas)

Every spring I ask Shelby a very fun question: Is it time to look at insurance filings? This year, that included combing through the 33 individual filings. Together, they give a rare glimpse into how private, venture-backed insurance companies are faring. It’s something we’ve been doing for as long as one health insurer, the $13 billion Devoted Health , has had members. (We used to follow a handful of others, too, but they all went public in 2021.) Devoted’s 2024 results are worth a read. The company’s membership is getting pretty big by the standards of these newer plans. And, as Shelby points out, it doesn’t seem to be facing the same issues of higher medical costs that pester the bigger plans . Its operating loss shrank, and its MLR improved. You can find the full financial rundown here . Then, you can join me in thanking Shelby for reading all the filings so you don’t have to! — Lydia (This is an edition of the Endpoints News Health Tech newsletter. Subscribe here to get it directly in your inbox.) HERE’S WHAT’S NEW Hims and Novo Nordisk partner to offer discounted Wegovy In an unlikely partnership between two rivals, Hims & Hers said its members will now be able to get Novo Nordisk’s weight loss drug Wegovy at a discounted price directly through the telehealth platform. Devoted Health shrank its operating losses in 2024 as revenue exploded Health insurance startup Devoted Health is a bright spot in the volatile market for private health plans for seniors, growing membership and revenue while narrowing its operating losses in 2024, even as competitors struggled to tame rising medical costs. Exclusive: Basil Systems raises $11.5M to help pharma navigate regulations A startup built to help pharmaceutical and medical device companies make sense of regulatory requirements just raised new funding , Endpoints News has learned exclusively. RFK Jr. touts CMS program testing new ways to pay for sickle cell disease treatment CHARLESTON, SC — HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. said Friday that 35 states had signed up to participate in a new payment model meant to improve access to and lower costs for gene therapies for sickle cell disease. THIS WEEK IN HEALTH TECH

Novo Nordisk scored a major win in its wide-ranging legal fight to keep compounders from making copies of its obesity drug semaglutide. A federal district court in Texas on Thursday denied a request for a preliminary injunction from the Outsourcing Facilities Association, a trade group that’s seeking to put semaglutide back on the FDA’s official shortage list so that its members can lawfully compound the drug. Semaglutide is sold by Novo Nordisk as Ozempic and Wegovy. The latest decision, which was filed under seal, deals a second blow for compounding pharmacies. A similar ruling issued last month by the same court also denied a preliminary injunction over tirzepatide, sold by Eli Lilly as Zepbound and Mounjaro. Typically, mixing up copies of a brand-name drug, or compounding, is allowed only when there’s a shortage. The ruling means that large compounding facilities have until May 22 to stop making copies of semaglutide, and smaller compounding facilities must stop immediately or risk FDA enforcement action. The FDA didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment on whether it would take enforcement action. “With the end of the shortage of Wegovy and Ozempic, no patient should have to be exposed to unsafe, inauthentic ‘semaglutide’ drugs,” Steve Benz, Novo Nordisk’s corporate vice president, legal and US general counsel, said in a statement on Friday. “Patient safety remains a top priority for Novo Nordisk and the extensive nationwide legal actions we have taken to protect Americans from the health risks posed by illegitimate ‘semaglutide’ drugs are working.” Novo Nordisk said it’s filed 111 lawsuits to date in federal courts across 32 states against entities marketing compounded semaglutide. Med spas and telehealth companies such as Hims and Ro have jumped on the opportunity to market alternate versions of the popular GLP-1 drugs, but the FDA and drugmakers have warned that the compounded products are not tested or approved for safety and efficacy. The Outsourcing Facilities Association sued the FDA in February after the agency announced that the shortage of semaglutide was over. The trade group alleged that the FDA provided no opportunity for public comment and that it “arbitrarily disregarded the weighty evidence that pharmacies and patients across the nation lack access to semaglutide products.” The trade group is “deeply disappointed” that the court “misapprehended or failed to take into consideration the clear and convincing evidence that demonstrates that the manufactured supply of semaglutide is not able to meet the enormous demand in the U.S.,” OFA chairman Lee Rosebush said in a statement. Rosebush said the group is in discussions with the FDA.

The markets have been volatile over the past few days , turned upside down by the tariffs announced by President Donald Trump. No industry has been spared. Our corner of health tech, including companies that deliver healthcare virtually, is more insulated, but it’s not immune. Stocks of companies like Hims, Teladoc, Amwell and GoodRx have all dropped more than 5% at one point in the last week as the market has fallen. That’s affecting private companies as well. Hinge Health, which filed to go public just last month, is now thinking of delaying its IPO plans, Business Insider reported on Friday, which is consistent with what I’ve heard. (When reached, a Hinge spokesperson said they were not able to share a comment.) An index of health tech companies fared only slightly better than the S&P 500. Venture-backed startups across industries seem to be lying low for the moment too — for good reason. The health tech industry’s been waiting three years for the public markets to open back up. In the meantime, funding for private companies hit $3 billion in the first quarter. If the window starts to close again, who knows when it’ll next reopen? For now, all health tech can do is hold onto their seats. — Ngai (This is an edition of the Endpoints News Health Tech newsletter. Subscribe here to get it directly in your inbox.) HERE’S WHAT’S NEW Trump administration hikes Medicare Advantage payments by $25B CMS said payments to Medicare Advantage plans are expected to increase by 5.06% in 2026 — much higher than the 2.23% increase floated in January. HHS says it may revisit anti-obesity drug policies after dropping Biden-era proposal The government said it “may consider future policy options” for anti-obesity medications, after declining to finalize a Biden-era proposal that would have expanded coverage to millions of Medicare patients. FTC chairman seeks to revive PBM case Federal Trade Commission Chairman Andrew Ferguson said he wants to bring back the agency’s case against pharmacy benefit managers, one day after the matter was put on hold because of the Trump administration’s recent firing of two commissioners. Senate confirms Dr. Oz to lead Medicare agency amid HHS overhaul The Senate on Thursday voted 53-45 to confirm trained surgeon and former daytime TV host Mehmet Oz as the next CMS administrator, as a major reshaping of the federal healthcare agencies continues. THIS WEEK IN HEALTH TECH