Cost of Mounjaro weight-loss drug to go up by 170% in the UK within weeks
Eli Lilly is increasing the price of Mounjaro, which is also used to treat type 2 diabetes, in the UK from September.
It comes amid a White House push to get drug makers to raise their prices overseas in order to cut prices in the US.
The price for a month's supply of the highest dose of Mounjaro, a 15mg KwikPen, will increase from £122 to £330.
The cost of a 2.5mg pen, the lowest dose available, will rise from £92 to £133 from September 1.
This means the annual cost of the 15mg dose will increase from £1,586 a year to £4,290.
This higher price will affect anyone in the UK who pays for the medicine privately.
However, it doesn't impact those who are prescribed the medicine through the NHS, as these prices were set with a separate deal, a Lilly spokesperson said.
The manufacturer said it agreed to a list price 'significantly below' others in Europe to prevent delaying Mounjaro's availability on the NHS.
'We are now aligning the list price more consistently,' Lilly said.
Dr Leyla Hannbeck, chief executive of the Independent Pharmacies Association, told the Daily Mail: 'We are shocked and very disappointed by this huge more than doubling of the wholesale cost of Mounjaro by the manufacturer Eli Lilly.
'British patients must not become pawns in a wider dispute about the costs of medicines arising from President Trump's recent letter to the US drug manufacturers.'
Mounjaro was launched in the UK in February 2024, compared to rival Novo Nordisk's Wegovy treatment which has been available since September 2023.
Lilly said it was working with private UK healthcare providers to ensure patients can keep accessing the medicine and potentially negotiate discounts which could be passed on to customers.
The manufacturer also said clinical research had proved the effectiveness of the Mounjaro injections, saying the drug had demonstrated its 'value'.
Known as tirzepatide and marketed under the brand name Mounjaro, the drug injection helps people to manage blood sugar.
It works in a similar way to semaglutide – sold as Ozempic, Wegovy and Rybelsus – which are in the same family of glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) agonist medications.
Administered by weekly injections, tirzepatide changes hormone levels in the body to slow down how fast food is digested.
This make you feel more full, for longer, on less food. Alongside healthy eating and exercise, this can help people lose weight.
But there are pros and cons to taking the weight-loss drug, including some side effects.
Short-term: Sickness and nausea
Indigestion & heartburn
Constipation
Diarrhoea
Headaches
Injection site reactions (redness, bruising, tenderness, swelling)
Gallstones and pancreatitis (in rare instances)
Positive impacts on heart health (in some instances)
Long-term: Weight loss
Muscle mass reduction
Slower metabolism
Insulin resistance
A spokesperson for Lilly said: 'Following a review, Lilly will increase the UK list price for Mounjaro (tirzepatide) from September 1 to address pricing inconsistencies compared to other developed countries, including in Europe.
'In parallel, we have reached an agreement with the NHS to ensure continued supply and patient access.
'While Lilly does not determine the prices that private healthcare providers set, we are working with them to maintain patient access.
'The UK was one of the first countries where Lilly launched Mounjaro, and our priority was to bring it to patients as quickly as possible during a time of limited supply of GLP-1 RA treatments for type 2 diabetes.
'At launch, Lilly agreed to a UK list price that is significantly below the European average to prevent delays in NHS availability.
'With changes in the environment and new clinical evidence supporting the value of Mounjaro, we are now aligning the list price more consistently to ensure fair global contributions to the cost of innovation.'
The US pays more for prescription drugs than any other country, often nearly three times as much as other developed nations. More Trending
President Donald Trump says he wants to narrow this gap to stop Americans from being 'ripped off'.
An NHS England spokesperson said: 'Licensed, cost-effective weight loss medication, such as tirzepatide (Mounjaro) provides a valuable tool to support people to reach a healthier weight and the wider health and lifestyle benefits that offers.
'The approved list price increase will not affect NHS commissioning of tirzepatide in England for eligible people living with obesity, based on clinical priority, or as a treatment for type 2 diabetes.
'Anyone with questions about their private tirzepatide prescription should contact their private provider.'
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