Cliff Notes – Weight loss jabs with only eight NHS care boards providing treatment
- The NHS rollout of Mounjaro, a key weight loss drug, has faced significant delays due to mismanagement and underfunding, with only eight out of 42 NHS Integrated Care Boards currently offering treatment.
- Dr. Jonathan Hazlehurst highlights the plight of over 97,500 eligible patients, noting that NHS England has only allocated funds for approximately 22,000, leading to potential disappointment and unfairness.
- Many patients, like Gary, express desperation for access to Mounjaro, which could dramatically improve their quality of life, while the NHS anticipates a 12-year wait to fully assess and treat obesity cases.
Postcode lottery for Mounjaro, the ‘King Kong’ of weight loss jabs, with only eight NHS care boards providing treatment | UK News
Thousands of severely obese patients are facing severely delayed treatment with what’s been called the ‘King Kong’ of weight loss jabs – because the NHS rollout has been mismanaged and underfunded, according to research.
Mounjaro was supposed to be available through GP surgeries and other community services from 23 June under an agreement between NHS England and the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE), the body that provides guidance on the use of new drugs.
But Freedom of Information requests reveal a postcode lottery, with only eight of 42 NHS Integrated Care Boards (ICBs) in England telling us they were providing treatment to patients, and many of the rest unable to guarantee when it would be available.
Weight loss jabs on the NHS as supply is limited
The research also shows that at least 19 had a cap on how many eligible patients they would treat in the first year.
Dr Jonathan Hazlehurst, an obesity specialist at University Hospitals Birmingham, said many patients were desperate for treatment – and Mounjaro may be a hopeful aid for those eligible.
“Giving people open promises and setting them up for disappointment and failure is clearly grossly unfair,” he said.
“That’s what the current system is doing.”
It calculated from NHS England data that there were 97,500 patients who should be treated in the first year.
But Dr Hazelhurst says NHS England has only provided funding for just over 22,000 patients.
