NHS patients will miss out on the ‘game-changer’ slimming jab Wegovy as private providers are being prioritised over the Health Service, medics have warned.
On Monday it was announced that Brits could now access Wegovy via specialist NHS weight-management services as part of a ‘controlled and limited launch’.
When it is fully rolled out it could help up to 50,000 patients lose weight, according to the Health Service.
But Novo Nordisk, the Danish pharma giant behind the ‘miracle’ drug, has already admitted that just a ‘proportion’ of already limited stock will be allocated to the NHS, with the rest shared with private firms.
Experts hit out at the move, arguing that it ‘doesn’t make sense’ and will leave those most in need without access to Wegovy.
On Monday it was announced that Brits could now access Wegovy via specialist Health Service weight-management services as part of a ‘controlled and limited launch’
Simple Online Pharmacy unpacks Wegovy at its headquarters in Glasgow yesterday. When the drug is fully rolled out, it could help up to 50,000 patients lose weight, according to the NHS
Professor Naveed Sattar, a consultant in metabolic medicine at the University of Glasgow, said he was ‘not comfortable’ with Wegovy being available privately.
He added: ‘It just doesn’t make sense to me because there is substantial need in the NHS. Why wouldn’t we put all that through the NHS?’
Professor Richard Holt, an expert in diabetes and endocrinology at the University of Southampton, said: ‘Using private providers will almost certainly mean that some of those who need the drug most will not be able obtain the drug.’
Semaglutide and liraglutide — the powerful ingredients behind Wegovy, Ozempic and Saxenda — have ushered in a new era in the war on obesity.
The treatments spur weight loss by mimicking the actions of the hormone GLP-1, which is released in the gut after eating.
As well as telling the pancreas to make more insulin, GLP-1 tells the brain that users feel full.
But such drugs are not without side-effects. Users commonly complain of nausea, constipation and diarrhoea after taking the medication.
Wegovy was approved specifically for weight loss in the US in 2021.
It was given the green light in Britain this year for the same reason.
After its launch on Monday, the NHS confirmed that only Brits with a body mass index (BMI) over 30, or a BMI of more than 27 and at least one weight-related illness, are eligible – and patients must also commit to dieting and exercise plans.
On the NHS, Wegovy costs the standard prescription rate of £9.65.
Many will not pay the prescription charge because the eligibility for the drug includes an existing illness, according to the NHS.
People are entitled to free prescriptions if they meet one or more exemption categories.
The qualifying criteria includes a continuing physical disability that prevents them going out without help from another person or having a specified medical condition. Both must have valid medical exemption certificates.
But the jab could cost between £199 and £299 for those with private insurance or paying out of their own pocket.
Ozempic, the other branded version of semaglutide which also triggers weight loss, is available only to people with type 2 diabetes.
Last month, major shortages of Wegovy due to soaring demand delayed the £40million pilot scheme.
The National Institute for Care and Excellence (NICE), which publishes heath guidelines, has advised that patients should only use Wegovy for a maximum of two years.
This is despite experts saying people will need to take the drug for life.
Experts have warned that Wegovy is not a ‘magic pill’. Trials have shown that users can rapidly pile pounds back on once they stop taking it, and it can trigger a side-effects including nausea, constipation and diarrhoea
Wegovy and Ozempic, which both contain semaglutide, work by triggering the body to produce a hormone called glucagon-like peptide-1 that is released naturally from the intestines after meals
Novo Nordisk said it still expects supplies of the drug to be ‘constrained for the foreseeable future’.
As a result, only a ‘proportion’ has been allocated to NHS services.
A spokesperson for Novo Nordisk told MailOnline today: ‘A proportion of available Wegovy supply has been allocated for use only within the NHS to allow healthcare professionals to implement NICE guidance, meaning any sales in the private market will not impact this supply.
‘We will continue to work with healthcare professionals to help ensure that patients with the highest unmet medical need are prioritised.’
Tens of thousands have already joined waiting lists for pharmacies which are receiving stocks of Wegovy to sell through online doctor services.
These include Superdrug, which said that more than 20,000 have registered interest, and they will be contacted in the order they registered their interest.
A month’s supply of Wegovy will cost between £195 and £295 from Superdrug.
Boots Online Doctor said that prescriptions of Wegovy will initially only be available to patients already using its weight-loss treatment service, with prices starting at £199 a month.
The online weight-management clinic Juniper also confirmed on Monday that it will be providing Wegovy privately.
It said it will be prioritising supply as it comes available to those on its waiting list.
Simple Online Pharmacy, based in the UK, also revealed that more than 50,000 people had registered an interest in Wegovy on its website.
It confirmed the drug would cost between £199 and £299 a month.
A UK study found that people who used Wegovy experienced rapid weight loss, losing 18 per cent of their weight over 68 weeks. They regained two-thirds of that weight, or 12 per cent of their original body weight in the year after they stopped the weekly injections
Sellers on Facebook Marketplace are listing weight-loss jabs for sale without the need for a prescription. One seller shows an image of a fridge full of medication and lists the weight-loss jabs for £130, pictured left. Another seller lists semaglutide, a drug found in both Ozempic and Wegovy, pictured right
It comes as pharmacists have already warned people to not buy weight-loss jabs such as Wegovy online over concerns they could cause serious harm and ‘damage major organs’.
Adverts selling ‘weight-loss pens’ and ‘skinny jabs’ have flooded social media in response to huge demand from Brits.
MailOnline found several adverts on Facebook Marketplace selling weight-loss jabs claiming to contain semaglutide, the ingredient in both Wegovy and its sister medication Ozempic.
One seller listed Ozempic for £150, while another shows an image of a fridge full of medication, listing ‘weight-loss pens’ for £130 and another selling a ‘skinny kit’ for £185.
Private pharmacies online list Ozempic for between £150 and £170 to buy with a prescription.
A lack of exercise, combined with unhealthy diets, has been blamed for the growing obesity epidemic in the UK.
Latest NHS data shows 26 per cent of adults in England are obese and a further 38 per cent are overweight but not obese.
A landmark study published in May also revealed the UK’s bulging waistline is stripping billions of pounds from the cash-strapped NHS each year, with twice as much spent on obese patients as on those of a healthy weight.
Costs per patient rise drastically the more people weigh, as they ‘collect obesity-related conditions’ such as type 2 diabetes, cancer and heart disease, according to research involving nearly 2.5million people.
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