5 ms·

This is big. HIMS and HERS and other companies are blantatly skirting patent laws under the guise of compounding.

by randycupertino 9mo ago

J7jKW2AAsgXhWm 9mo ago
Mochi health too
teaearlgraycold 9mo ago
I’m generally happy to see IP disrespected.
- Auracle 9mo ago
  Then you’ll eventually be generally unhappy to see no new medications come out.
  - junofan 9mo ago
    There seems to be an explosion of drugs for fat loss. No signs of slowing down.
  - direwolf20 9mo ago
    China disrespects IP and has the fastest growth of anywhere, and has medications
    - refurb 9mo ago
      China tries to steal IP, but otherwise has a functioning IP system including for drugs Chinese companies make. And China’s growth is about 5% in 2025, which isn’t close in the least to the fastest (Vietnam at 17%). And China has medications because of other countries with IP (mostly Europe and US). So if the US gets rid of IP, the. A very large part of new drugs won’t happen.
      - direwolf20 9mo ago
        I don't care about the numbers, I care about the growth. They went from zero to high speed trains linking all major cities in a decade. They went from manufacturing cheap slop knockoffs of American products to top–of–the–line locally–designed products in about the same time. They make their own semiconductors now.
        refurb 9mo ago
        I care about the absolute level of development, not the change. The fact that China wasted decades on a failed economic ideology explains why they were so undeveloped up until the 1980's. If anything, China is simply catching up (in some ways) to developed countries. While certainly admirable, achieving what has already been done in other places isn't that impressive.
  - teaearlgraycold 9mo ago
    A significant change to IP doesn't necessarily mean the world stops working on things. It just pivots us to a new set of problems.
raincom 9mo ago
Everyone can make their own compounding drug in their basements, thanks to Telegram and other hidden platforms: source sema/tirz, get bac water, mix them.
krackers 9mo ago
>blantatly skirting patent laws Why is this a bad thing? The quickest way to fix the medical/insurance/bureaucracy complex is to just allow people to sell direct to consumer. The best (worst) example of this is CPAP. Ideally you'd just be able to go and buy one for $300, but instead there is a complex around "necessity" and "prescription", which creates an effective monopoly where the exact same hardware can be sold at different price points with software locked features. If even a "simple" mechanical device like this which violates no patents and can't materially harm a person in any way can be restricted on grounds of paternalistic "safety", then one would be right to remain skeptical of the claim that the FDA is restricting action against unauthorized semaglutide knockoffs to >safeguard consumers from drugs for which the FDA cannot verify quality, safety, or efficacy.
- loeg 9mo ago
  Why is it bad when companies break the law? We have patent laws for a reason (to incentivize enormously expensive drug development). Novo and Lilly already sell direct to the consumer! Yes, you need a prescription, but once you have one you can buy straight from the manufacturer.
  - selectively 9mo ago
    That's nice. The rest of the world has price caps on what these companies can charge for drugs. It's one or the other. You can have your ''patents'' and ''intellectual property'' respected...but that requires you not charge an outrageously higher price in certain markets, like the US.
    - pfdietz 9mo ago
      The rest of the world is free riding. The solution is a law preventing drug firms from pricing in the US higher than (some small multiple of) what it charges anyone else in the world.
      - selectively 9mo ago
hn_throwaway_99 9mo ago
> blantatly skirting patent laws Can you please explain (TFA doesn't mention patent laws, just unregulated drugs)? For example, my understanding is that semaglutide is protected by patent in the US - I had assumed HIMS was including semaglutide in some of their formulations under an agreement with the patent holder, but I guess that's not correct? Side note, I'm all for the true innovators being able to patent drugs (like semaglutide) that they put a lot of research dollars into, but seriously fuck all these additional "method of delivery" and "formulation" patents that are bullshit that just get added on later by the patent holder solely as a way to try to restrict the entry of generics into the market after the original patent expires.
mullingitover 9mo ago
> blantatly skirting patent laws Implied but not explicitly stated in the FDA announcement: the compounders’ real crime is not paying their protection money.

This is big. HIMS and HERS and other companies are blantatly skirting patent laws under the guise of compounding.

J7jKW2AAsgXhWm 9mo ago

Mochi health too

teaearlgraycold 9mo ago

I’m generally happy to see IP disrespected.

Auracle 9mo ago
Then you’ll eventually be generally unhappy to see no new medications come out.
- junofan 9mo ago
  There seems to be an explosion of drugs for fat loss. No signs of slowing down.
- direwolf20 9mo ago
  China disrespects IP and has the fastest growth of anywhere, and has medications
  - refurb 9mo ago
    China tries to steal IP, but otherwise has a functioning IP system including for drugs Chinese companies make. And China’s growth is about 5% in 2025, which isn’t close in the least to the fastest (Vietnam at 17%). And China has medications because of other countries with IP (mostly Europe and US). So if the US gets rid of IP, the. A very large part of new drugs won’t happen.
    - direwolf20 9mo ago
      I don't care about the numbers, I care about the growth. They went from zero to high speed trains linking all major cities in a decade. They went from manufacturing cheap slop knockoffs of American products to top–of–the–line locally–designed products in about the same time. They make their own semiconductors now.
      - refurb 9mo ago
        I care about the absolute level of development, not the change. The fact that China wasted decades on a failed economic ideology explains why they were so undeveloped up until the 1980's. If anything, China is simply catching up (in some ways) to developed countries. While certainly admirable, achieving what has already been done in other places isn't that impressive.
- teaearlgraycold 9mo ago
  A significant change to IP doesn't necessarily mean the world stops working on things. It just pivots us to a new set of problems.

raincom 9mo ago

Everyone can make their own compounding drug in their basements, thanks to Telegram and other hidden platforms: source sema/tirz, get bac water, mix them.

krackers 9mo ago

>blantatly skirting patent laws Why is this a bad thing? The quickest way to fix the medical/insurance/bureaucracy complex is to just allow people to sell direct to consumer. The best (worst) example of this is CPAP. Ideally you'd just be able to go and buy one for $300, but instead there is a complex around "necessity" and "prescription", which creates an effective monopoly where the exact same hardware can be sold at different price points with software locked features. If even a "simple" mechanical device like this which violates no patents and can't materially harm a person in any way can be restricted on grounds of paternalistic "safety", then one would be right to remain skeptical of the claim that the FDA is restricting action against unauthorized semaglutide knockoffs to >safeguard consumers from drugs for which the FDA cannot verify quality, safety, or efficacy.

loeg 9mo ago
Why is it bad when companies break the law? We have patent laws for a reason (to incentivize enormously expensive drug development). Novo and Lilly already sell direct to the consumer! Yes, you need a prescription, but once you have one you can buy straight from the manufacturer.
- selectively 9mo ago
  That's nice. The rest of the world has price caps on what these companies can charge for drugs. It's one or the other. You can have your ''patents'' and ''intellectual property'' respected...but that requires you not charge an outrageously higher price in certain markets, like the US.
  - pfdietz 9mo ago
    The rest of the world is free riding. The solution is a law preventing drug firms from pricing in the US higher than (some small multiple of) what it charges anyone else in the world.
    - selectively 9mo ago

hn_throwaway_99 9mo ago

> blantatly skirting patent laws Can you please explain (TFA doesn't mention patent laws, just unregulated drugs)? For example, my understanding is that semaglutide is protected by patent in the US - I had assumed HIMS was including semaglutide in some of their formulations under an agreement with the patent holder, but I guess that's not correct? Side note, I'm all for the true innovators being able to patent drugs (like semaglutide) that they put a lot of research dollars into, but seriously fuck all these additional "method of delivery" and "formulation" patents that are bullshit that just get added on later by the patent holder solely as a way to try to restrict the entry of generics into the market after the original patent expires.

mullingitover 9mo ago

> blantatly skirting patent laws Implied but not explicitly stated in the FDA announcement: the compounders’ real crime is not paying their protection money.