The GLP-1 Envy: A New Era of Healthcare Advertising
The Super Bowl Ad: A Tantalizing Pitch
Americans tuning in to the Super Bowl will witness a captivating advertisement from the telehealth company Hims & Hers. The ad opens with a bold statement: "Rich people live longer." It then takes viewers on a journey through the lives of America's wealthiest and wellness-obsessed individuals, from Bryan Johnson's red light bathing to Jeff Bezos' age-reversal start-up. The ad's message is clear: you too can live like the rich, all you need is access to healthcare like theirs.
The Healthcare Divide
Hims & Hers positions itself as a gateway to a different world of healthcare, one with concierge doctors offering personalized, cutting-edge therapies. The company's actual offerings, including diagnostic blood testing and hormone therapy, may be more mundane than a facelift, but the ad emphasizes the accessibility of these treatments for a price. Telehealth platforms like Hims & Hers offer patients the ability to pay out of pocket for quick treatment, but the fine print often includes a requirement for a virtual consultation with a medical provider before receiving a prescription.
The GLP-1 Envy: A Perfect Opportunity
Last year, Hims & Hers ran a Super Bowl ad focused on democratizing care, specifically GLP-1s for weight loss. The ad asserted that America's obesity epidemic is caused by 'the system', which keeps people sick by making healthcare unaffordable. When name-brand GLP-1s like Wegovy first started being prescribed for weight loss in 2021, they were inaccessible for most Americans due to their steep cost and limited insurance coverage. As Americans of more humble means began to see the results the drugs could bring about, many began scrambling for cheaper sources, a perfect opportunity for Hims & Hers and its peers.
Expanding Horizons: From GLP-1s to Peptides
But Americans aren't just clamoring for GLP-1s anymore. Medications like testosterone and peptides, a largely untested class of drugs with a wide range of purported health benefits, are in high demand too. Hims & Hers has positioned itself to meet these demands, launching a low-testosterone treatment program and acquiring a peptide-manufacturing facility. The company plans to use this factory to make its own 'personalized' drugs, evoking the concierge treatments enjoyed by the rich.
The Personalization Myth
However, in telehealth-platform parlance, personalization usually refers to creating a version of a name-brand medication that fits a patient's needs by, say, changing the dose, adding other active ingredients, or offering it in a different format. These compounded versions aren't reviewed by the FDA, and the medical community is concerned that telehealth platforms too easily allow patients to take unsafe drugs or drugs they simply don't need. The Obesity Society warns people not to use compounded GLP-1s, as they may not contain the appropriate active ingredients.
The Hims & Hers Ad: A Smart Move?
The Hims & Hers ad is shrewd in its heavy-handedness. It validates Americans' frustration with healthcare and positions itself as a deliverer of justice. The ad is narrated by the rapper Common, known for his socially conscious music. However, the company's move to stop selling compounded GLP-1 pills after the DOJ investigation may be a smart one, as it addresses the concerns of the medical community and the public.
The Wellness Craze: A Central Pursuit
At the same time, Americans can't seem to stop imitating billionaires' wellness habits: untested peptides, NAD+ IV drips, Erewhon smoothies, red-light masks, keto diets. The pursuit of wellness has become central to American life and the American economy, even when the benefits of so many of these practices are questionable at best. Hims & Hers is accurate in its diagnosis that much of this country's gap in health and longevity boils down to wealth, but the treatment it prescribes seems to be an unlikely cure.
