MPs blast NHS Mounjaro rollout as "unambitious" over "woefully small" numbers
The Commons Health and Social Care Committee has branded NHS plans for the Mounjaro rollout "unambitious", saying only around six per cent of eligible patients will get the weight-loss jab in its first three years while millions buy privately — creating a two-tier system.
Plans for rolling out the weight-loss jab Mounjaro on the NHS are unambitious and reach a “woefully small number of people”, MPs have said, with only around six per cent of eligible patients getting or due to receive the drug in its first three years.
The Commons Health and Social Care Committee warned of a two-tier system for access to the GLP-1 drugs, with millions buying privately while people living with obesity are let down by the NHS, with access determined by ability to pay rather than clinical need.
“The Government must urgently reassess the pace of rollout of Mounjaro,” the committee said, calling for a summit of providers and healthcare professionals to decide the best way forward on access to GLP-1s.
In June 2024, the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) recommended Mounjaro as an option for managing overweight and obesity. The NHS estimated 2.8 million patients would be eligible — and if all were given the drug within the first year, the cost would be £15.2 billion over five years. As a result, NICE agreed to a gradual rollout.
The NHS has given access to 220,000 people over three years, but MPs say new “ambitious targets” are needed to help far more. Data suggests more than 2.37 million packs of GLP-1s are prescribed every month in the UK, with the vast majority bought privately.
Sources: The Sun | Scottish Sun
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