Shaun Noorian, founder and CEO of Empower Pharmacy, said that the rise of personalized medicine and national pharmacy networks is driving renewed demand for pharmaceutical compounding. This statement was made during a podcast.
"Now we see that a resurgence of compounding is coming," said Noorian. "Prescribers and patients are becoming more educated on the benefits of personalized medicine. Pharmacies are no longer mom-and-pop shops as traditional compound pharmacies have been. We can serve every single B-to-B and B-to-C pharmaceutical end user in the country."
Pharmacy compounding plays a significant role in personalized medicine by preparing customized dosage forms, such as allergen-free liquids, discontinued formulations, or pediatric doses, which mass-produced drugs cannot accommodate. According to the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), this practice gained renewed importance amid supply disruptions like the GLP-1 drug shortages in the early 2020s. It is regulated under the 2013 Drug Quality and Security Act, which aims to safeguard quality without eliminating access. Advocates claim this balance encourages both innovation and patient-centered care.
From December 2022 to October 2024, the FDA declared tirzepatide—a key GLP-1 used for diabetes and weight loss—officially in shortage. This prompted state-licensed compounding pharmacies to legally produce copies. After the shortage ended, compounders were ordered to halt production; a Texas federal court backed this enforcement in March 2025, citing patient safety and proprietary protections.
Empower Pharmacy and Strive Pharmacy were among several companies targeted by Eli Lilly in lawsuits filed in April 2025. Lilly alleged that these pharmacies improperly compounded and distributed non-personalized versions of tirzepatide at prices as low as $99 per month—far below Lilly’s branded price of approximately $1,086 per month. Lilly claims these compounded formulations lack rigorous quality testing and pose safety risks. Empower and Strive argue they operated legally during a drug shortage and filled critical access gaps.
Empower Pharmacy contends that its compounded GLP-1 medications provided essential access when name-brand tirzepatide and semaglutide were in severe shortage. Noorian said that the compounding of these drugs "fills the gap" for patients unable to obtain or afford factory-produced versions, adding that those patients "depend on it." Empower portrays itself as a counterbalance to pricing and supply issues in the Big Pharma model.
Noorian founded Empower Pharmacy in 2009 in Houston after his own need for personalized hormone therapy. Under his leadership, Empower became one of the U.S.’s largest compounding outsourcing facilities, expanding to fill around 15,000 prescriptions daily.
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