NHS ‘doesn’t have capability’ to rollout weight reduction jabs like Wegovy

Medical leaders are warning the NHS does not have capacity to expand rollout of “life changing” weight loss jabs.

Health Secretary Wes Streeting had announced unemployed people will be given weight-loss jabs under Government to tackle obesity and improve the economy. But over 200 doctors and specialists have written an open letter to the minister saying the NHS cannot provide the personalised lifestyle counselling these appetite suppressing drugs require. Without drastic lifestyle changes the fortnightly injections lead people to lose muscle mass before piling the fat back on.

The new warning comes from the Obesity Health Alliance, a coalition of 60 health charities and medical royal colleges which said some patients are already being asked to wait for up to five years for specialist weight management support. Some specialist obesity services are so overstretched that they have closed their waiting lists entirely, according to the OHA report.

Dr Sarah Williams, NHS clinician and OHA spokesperson, said: “We’re seeing a tidal wave of unprecedented demand that we simply cannot meet with the resources currently available. The government needs to act now to make obesity services more equitable and sustainable. Clinicians are in a difficult position, having to ration life-changing treatments due to overwhelming demand.”

Currently, 4.1 million people in England are technically eligible for the most popular weight-loss drug Wegovy, but the NHS’s own projections estimate that by 2028, fewer than 50,000 people per year will receive it. The criteria is having a body mass index of at least 35 and at least one weight-related condition such as high blood pressure or cardiovascular disease.

The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) is soon expected to approve an even more powerful weight loss jab Mounjaro – dubbed the “King Kong” of weight loss jabs. Previous studies showed it can help people lose 26% of their body weight in 18 months. However NHS England has said it could take up to 12 years to implement the draft recommendations under the current conditions.

US firm Eli Lilly, maker of Mounjaro, this week signed a memorandum of understanding with the Government to work together on the testing and development of jabs which deliver tailored lifestyle support via smartphone apps. A study with Manchester University of Manchester will quantify Mounjaro’s long-term effects and its impact on sick days.

Sir Keir Starmer said the use of weight loss jabs could help reduce pressure on the NHS and boost the economy by getting people back into work. The Prime Minister told the BBC : “I think these drugs could be very important for our economy and for health. This drug will be very helpful to people who want to lose weight, need to lose weight, very important for the economy so people can get back into work.

“Very important for the NHS because, as I’ve said time and again, yes, we need more money for our NHS, but we’ve got to think differently. We’ve got to reduce the pressure on the NHS. So this will help in all of those areas.”

Weight loss jabs currently being prescribed on the NHS and sold privately slow digestion and reduce appetite by mimicking hormones which regulate hunger and feelings of fullness. They are designed to act like one of these hormones, known as glucagon-like peptide 1 (GLP-1). Some users suffer unbearable side effects of nausea and diarrhoea.

Health Secretary Mr Streeting had said: “The long-term benefits of these drugs could be monumental in our approach to tackling obesity. For many people, these jabs will be life-changing, help them get back to work and ease the demands on our NHS. But along with the rights to access these new drugs, there must remain a responsibility on us all to take healthy living more seriously.”

The OHA has called for an independent review of obesity services to ensure patients are getting the care that they need after it claimed that the provision of services is “insufficient and unavailable to a significant number of people”.

A new report from the OHA states: “Obesity pharmacotherapy can currently only be accessed on the NHS via specialist overweight and obesity management services; however, the provision of services is not sufficient to meet the number of people who are eligible for treatment. Many healthcare professionals who provided testimony to OHA directly state that this has added a significant increase in demand on already overstretched services, with waiting lists now routinely reaching three to five years. Some services are also now closed to referrals due to capacity exceeding demand.”

It comes as polling for the Lib Dems of 2,100 adults showed 27% of those in work reported being unable to attend in the last 12 months because they were waiting for an NHS appointment. Of those who wanted a NHS GP or dentist appointment, 45% were unable to bet one at all.