Weight-loss jabs could soon be among most commonly used NHS drugs, top doctor says
Weight-loss jabs could soon become among the most commonly used drugs, the NHS's top doctor has said.
Professor Sir Stephen Powis said cheaper versions of the jabs, such as Mounjaro, could lead to widespread use and be as transformative as statins - one of the most highly prescribed drugs taken by around 7 million people in the UK.
His comments come as the NHS prepares to roll out access to Mounjaro, also known as tirzepatide, in GP practices.
Prof Powis told the NHS ConfedExpo conference the NHS needs to go 'further and faster' to 'turn the tide' on rising levels of obesity and said the drugs could one day be accessed in pharmacies.
The outgoing medical director of NHS England told reporters the weight-loss jabs could also be targeted at patients waiting for operations who cannot have them due to their weight.
But the government's chief medical officer, Professor Chris Whitty, warned the jabs would not be a 'get out of jail card' for public and social health measures.
He told the conference: 'They're not a get out of jail card, which means we don't have to do other social things. It is unacceptable, for example, to be advertising obviously obesogenic foods to young children, on the basis of subsequently they might be able to have jabs to undo the damage which will otherwise be lifelong.'
An estimated 1.5 million are taking weight loss jabs in the UK. The Independent recently reported on a case of a woman who was refused a hip operation due to her weight, who had been forced to pay privately for the jabs as she struggled to access them through the NHS.
Later this month, GPs in England will be allowed to prescribe Mounjaro for the first time. Patients previously needed to access the drugs through a special weight loss service.
Prof Powis hailed the rollout in GP surgeries as an 'exciting milestone' and said NHS officials are also examining ways to 'broaden access to the drugs', such as through pharmacies and digital services.
Around 29 per cent of adults in the UK are obese.
Prof Powis said: 'Right now, obesity is estimated to cost the NHS approximately £11.4 billion every year – this financial burden is unsustainable for the NHS and wider economy.
'We have to turn the tide. We have to and will go further, and faster.
'In just a few years from now, some of today's weight loss drugs will be available at much lower cost. This could completely transform access to these innovative treatments.
He said eventually there would be more drugs coming onto the market, which means prices would likely fall.
He said: 'We have been through this with statins, and the use of statins is now very different from when they first came out, and I've no doubt that will be the same for these drugs.'
'So I think over time it's highly likely that they will become more widespread, the evidence base will increase, we will learn better how to deploy them, we'll learn how long people need to be on them, and in terms of weight reduction, how much weight reduction is maintained once people come off – that's a big unknown,' he said.
But he said he was not 'starry-eyed' about weight loss drugs, adding they are 'no silver bullet'.
He told reporters: 'These medicines can be harmful if they are prescribed without the right checks and wraparound care – they can have side effects, including nausea, dehydration and inflammation of the pancreas, and a worrying number of people are continuing to access them without appropriate checks via the internet.
Around 220,000 people are expected to benefit from the rollout of jabs at GP services over the next three years.
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