Oprah Winfrey Leaving WeightWatchers Board After Revealing Weight Loss Drug Use
- Tiffany Rigby
- Feb 29, 2024
- 2 min read
After almost 10 years Oprah Winfrey is leaving the board of WeightWatchers after she revealed that she is using a weight loss drug. The company says Winfrey told the board this week that she would not stand for re-election at the company's next annual meeting which is set for May 9. She has been a board member and a public face for the weight loss company since 2015.
“I look forward to continuing to advise and collaborate with WeightWatchers and CEO Sima Sistani in elevating the conversation around recognizing obesity as a chronic condition, working to reduce stigma, and advocating for health equity,” Winfrey said in a statement.
In December 2023, Winfrey told People.com she had decided to start taking a weight-loss medication after coming to the realization that weight management does not hinge solely on a person’s self-control. “The fact that there’s a medically approved prescription for managing weight and staying healthier, in my lifetime, feels like relief, like redemption, like a gift, and not something to hide behind and once again be ridiculed for,” she told People.
After the announcement of her departure, the company's shares fell more than 20% and with her departure, the company’s board will be reduced from 10 members to 9.
Winfrey who owns about 1.3 million shares of WW International says she will donate her interest in Weight Watchers to the National Museum of African American History and Culture.
“I have been a long-time supporter of this worthy organization, and I am proud to continue my support,” she said.
In a statement, the board of directors of WeightWatchers said it is “supportive of Ms. Winfrey’s proposal to donate all of her WW stock to the NMAAHC during the company’s upcoming trading window in March 2024. Ms. Winfrey is making the donation to support the NMAAHC’s goal to promote and highlight the contributions of African Americans and to eliminate any perceived conflict of interest around her taking weight-loss medications. In addition, Ms. Winfrey intends to donate the proceeds from any future exercises of her WW stock options to NMAAHC.”
According to the company, Winfrey and WeightWatchers will host an event on weight health featuring “industry experts coming together to un-shame our relationship with weight” in May.
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