Weight-loss jabs should be available to millions more on NHS, Streeting suggests
Streeting says weight-loss jab access shouldn’t be ‘determined by wealth’
- Labour's health secretary, Wes Streeting, has called for wider NHS access to weight-loss jabs, saying that health outcomes should not be “determined by wealth”.
- Speaking at the Labour Party conference, Mr Streeting criticised the current disparity where millions cannot afford these potentially life-changing drugs, contrasting it with the experiences of the wealthy.
- Around 1.5 million people in the UK use weight-loss jabs, but approximately 90 per cent pay privately due to stringent NHS eligibility criteria, with private costs often reaching hundreds of pounds monthly.
- Mr Streeting noted that the owner of Mounjaro, Eli Lilly, increased private prices in the UK following pressure from US president Donald Trump, who aims to secure cheaper drugs for American citizens.
- He suggested that the UK's success in negotiating drug prices has made it a target for Mr Trump, creating pressure on both the pharmaceutical industry and the UK.