GPs in England will be paid bonuses worth millions of pounds if they prescribe weight loss injections to their most obese patients under a new NHS contract. The deal will see a typical GP practice earn an extra £3,000 a year for prescribing Mounjaro to at least eight in ten eligible patients on its list.
Health officials hope the financial incentive will accelerate the rollout of the drug, which can help patients lose up to a fifth of their body weight in just over a year. Despite being authorised to prescribe the treatment eight months ago, not all practices are currently doing so, according to the Department of Health and Social Care.
An estimated 2.4 million people in the UK are taking weight-loss drugs, but severe NHS rationing means the vast majority buy them privately at a cost of around £200 a month. NHS England has implemented a phased 12-year rollout of the once-weekly injection, with only 220,000 patients prioritised in the first three years. It is currently offered to severely obese people with a BMI over 40 who also have conditions such as high blood pressure, sleep apnoea, cardiovascular disease, or type 2 diabetes.
Health Secretary Wes Streeting said: 'Weight-loss drugs can be a real game changer for those who need them. I'm determined that access should be based on need, not ability to pay.' He added that the incentives would bring fairness to obesity jabs, with the phased rollout targeting those with the highest clinical need first.
GPs will also receive additional payments for referring patients to weight management services. The total value of the weight-related bonuses could reach £25 million. However, Professor Victoria Tzortziou Brown of the Royal College of GPs warned that widening the rollout could increase workload unsustainably and raise unrealistic expectations among ineligible patients.
Henry Gregg of the National Pharmacy Association argued that community pharmacies should be used to support the NHS in reaching more patients, rather than overstretched GPs. He said pharmacies can provide wraparound support and lifestyle changes for sustainable weight loss.
