Utah joins lawsuit against Hims and Hers alleging unauthorized subscriptions, data sharing

SALT LAKE CITY — Utah on Wednesday joined California and the Federal Trade Commission in a lawsuit against Hims and Hers, accusing the telehealth company of charging customers for subscriptions they never purchased and sharing private health data without consent.

More specifically, the lawsuit alleges the company promoted a "free consult" that ultimately enrolled customers in a recurring prescription subscription without proper consent or prior consultation with a healthcare provider.

When customers discovered this and attempted to cancel their subscriptions, the lawsuit alleges Hims and Hers intentionally complicated the cancellation process.

"Despite being aware of consumers' struggles, Hims repeatedly chose not to provide simple mechanisms for consumers to stop recurring charges for medications they no longer want. Instead, Hims spent years unlawfully refusing to provide most consumers with simple cancellation mechanisms," said the lawsuit.

The lawsuit also said Hims and Hers broke privacy promises, alleging the company shared sensitive medical data with third-party advertisers — including Meta and Snap — after assuring customers their data would be "private and secure."

"Hims promised a free consult and private healthcare. What Utahns actually got was a subscription trap and their most personal health data shipped to advertisers. We're not letting Hims profit off broken promises. That's why we're taking them to court," Utah Attorney General Derek Brown said in a statement.

Utah, California and the FTC are seeking a permanent injunction against Hims and Hers, along with restitution for affected consumers, civil penalties and the seizing of profits obtained through the alleged practices.

"Our aim is to restore trust and protect consumers from deceptive practices. Hims' actions not only violate the law but also undermine Utahns' confidence in healthcare providers. We are committed to ensuring that consumers feel safe and respected in their transactions," Utah Department of Commerce Commissioner Margaret Woolley Busse said in a statement.

In a response posted to the company's website Wednesday, Hims and Hers pushed back against the lawsuit, saying it "disregards substantial evidence we provided the FTC during its nearly three-year investigation, ignores established state laws and industry standards in telehealth, and contorts the law to try to manufacture claims."

"This is not enforcement grounded in consumer protection; it is an effort to generate headlines at our expense. We are confident in our position and will vigorously defend ourselves against these baseless claims," the statement continued.

Impacted customers can file complaints through the Utah Division of Consumer Protection's website.

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