Maintenance Policy Email Cloud Pharmacy And Others. (A list of Mounjaro maintenance providers)

[RightOnTrack]

Hi, just for anyone who's asking for pharmacies policies on maintenance, I've just received an email from Cloud pharmacy and this is so far the best stance I've seen anywhere. Some other pharmacies offer maintenance but Cloud seem to be the first I've seen to finally outrightly state "for life" rather than 'We'll see how it goes', 'Well have a consultation and discuss your options', 'Let's have a chat', 'You have to pay a small fee to stay on our books while you're on maintenance', 'We're happy to work with you for maintenance and we take it individually', etc. I also know they offer one month on and one month off for maintenance from what some people on reddit are on. I hope more pharmacies get on board this "for life" stance rather than beating about the bush or being limited to a certain bmi cutoff or taper.

Just wanted to post this so others can have an idea and decide for themselves as it's mostly been one or two popular pharmacies that posters constantly advertise all over the MJ forums. I use Cloud and they're excellent so far. They're on the monj.co uk list and others lists too. I'll definitely stay with them for maintenance when the time comes. No referral codes and they give discounts to their customers without you doing anything for it, so I have no skin in the game. I definitely have nothing to gain from posting, just sharing to help others.

Feel free to share other pharmacies maintenance policy on this thread if you have any in writing. It will help us all to know who to go with for support. X

Yes I have seen that about Cloud- good. here is the link to the plans at Oushk. I think they may be slightly cheaper as they offer 15% off and free delivery on maintenance plans, but I am not sure.

I also have heard of someone with Cloud who is doing one month on / one month off 5mg, which seemed to be going well.

https://www.oushkpharmacy.com/maintenance

I saw some posts on one of the facebook groups chatting about the Cloud Pharmacy maintenance plan and they were saying they think it will only allow you to maintain 5mg, 10mg or 15mg. I don't know if that is accurate/I haven't checked as not a Cloud customer, but something to check/watch out for if that doesn't suit you.

Do you know if you can take a break and then go back on medication? I'm likely to end up with a 2-3 of months worth of pens when I hit target (due to me ordering early/using 5th dose etc) and I know I'm not alone in that. I may also want to try a few months without meds action and see how I go.

Oushk do a 'pay £20/month to stay on our books' which lets you take a break then go back when you've used up the stash or tapered down then want to go back to it. But I don't know if any other pharmacy allows a break when you're at a healthy weight and would then let you start back up again (titrating back up if needed, of course)?

You can talk to them (or other pharmacies offering maintenance) via email or call. They've been very quick and helpful anytime I had some questions. Here's a link to their website for their full maintenance policy.

I believe it's customisable to suit each customer's need. They're just quoting the doses that are deemed as 'maintenance doses' according to the manufacturer Eli Lily, but won't keep you on them if you wish to increase or decrease for your personal needs. For example, here's an excerpt:

"Some patients might find that their current dose works well for weight maintenance, while others might require small adjustments, whether that be a reduction or an increase. The current ‘maintenance doses’ are 5mg, 10mg or 15mg. It is important to note that your ‘maintenance dose’ is one whereby your appetite is supressed enough to allow you to consume enough calories to keep your weight he same; you can calculate your maintenance calories using our weight care
portal."

https://www.cloudpharmacy.co.uk/guides/mounjaro-maintenance/?_kx=C8cLCeQ5d2pxtoy3J2X_dZOypsa6ONLnrNGkdEsVN2A.Rzf8nu

I have been asking them this week and they've all been a bit vague. I want to stop, I don't want to go on a maintenance dose, but I want the option to restart - so Oushk look like the best bet.

But here is the responses I have had so far:

Cloud:

Unlike subscription-based models, Cloud Pharmacy offers a more flexible approach to treatment. This means patients have the freedom to adjust or pause their treatment based on their health goals and
lifestyle, under the guidance of our healthcare professionals. This flexibility can be particularly beneficial during the maintenance phase- you don’t have to worry about remembering to cancel your subscription.

That being said, you are welcome to stop purchasing from us whenever you need, and once you wish to begin again no fees will be charged. However, the dose of which you are able to order will depend on the length of the pause, though once you get to this point you are able to get back in touch with our medical team so they can provide better guidance in which all factors can be considered.

Phamulous:

We support long term Mounjaro maintenance prescribing as long as it is safe and appropriate (within healthy BMI) and we have a number of patients currently on maintenance. In order to ensure there is enough history of prescribing we encourage patients to switch as soon as possible in their journey.
Our maintenance options are personalised and include once weekly prescribing and titrating down to the lowest effective dose and may include pausing the treatment for a period of time if the weight loss continues. Re-starting the treatment is possible and is assessed on a case by case within 12 months of stopping

The biggest snag in this is I am on my last pen now - so essentially it would mean buying another pen I think to go on to their maintenance plan.

I also know someone online who asked her pharmacy for a break to finish up her stack of pens. I can't remember the pharmacy. Will search for it if i can. She had to send them pics of the stash of pens and proof of her order (screenshot email confirmation showing her name and the pen doses). They agreed to let her finish them and come back to order any dose she needed instead of starting from 2.5mg.

I believe most pharmacies are flexible this way once you have proof and it's easy to have proof with the email confirmation or the box with the postage label.

How much is Cloud charging for this service?

Thanks @RightOnTrack . That's good to know (and I could do that, they're all legit pens)! If you find out which pharmacy that would be really useful.

Oushk have been good but I don't want to have to spend £20 a month if I don't need to. I don't really feel I need the support or maintenance calls though I can imagine they're very useful to some.

There's no charge.

So far, only Oushk have a charge for maintenance plans. Others don't.

Yes I agree. A bit too full on for me with all the video calls and extra paid consultations just to ask questions. Some don't mind but I'd rather be left to get on with it and contact them only if I need to and have them simply answer. That's what I like about some of the other pharmacies. Pharmulous I heard are good too.

I'll search for that post and give you the pharmacy name.

@HippoPortlyMouse It's IQ Doctor.

Magic, thank you! And good timing too as I was thinking of getting a 7.5 from them as they're cheapest at the moment.

@HippoPortlyMouse
I was actually going to add that to my post. Yes they're the cheapest now although Medexpress seem to be in a race with them and have started offering a double price match or something since IQ doctor became cheaper than them, which may make them (medexpress) the cheapest again. I've never used medexpress but get a lot of Mounjaro info from the MJ uk forums all over. The reddit ones seem so knowledgeable about what's going on in general. So you can check to see their (medexpress) recent offer if you'd like.

Thanks @RightOnTrack. I think (although I'll check again) the double price match is only if you're an existing MedExpress customer but haven't ordered in a few months. I've never bought from MedExpress either, so sadly that one's out!

I emailed IQ Doctor about their maintenance policy and this was their reply…

Hi,

We can provide Maintenance treatment until a healthy BMI has been reached and possibly beyond that to maintain a healthy BMI. The exact cut off BMI is at the discretion of the prescriber but a possible approval of a BMI of until 23/24 can be considered, generally we do provide maintenance as long as the patient has started treatment with BMI higher than 30. Each patient is assessed individually.

Kind regards

Customer Service
IQ Doctor
123-131 Bradford Street,
Birmingham,
United Kingdom,
B12 0NS
Tel: 0121 679 9794

They charge you £5 for a 15 minute in depth consultation and then give you 15% off each pen and free delivery so definitely worth it

@TheWildRoseBear it's the £20 a month to not get medication. I'm imagining a situation where I hit goal weight (pipe dream right now) and end with 2-4 months of pens in the fridge I want to use up first - or I want to try a period of time off the medication.

If I want to go back on it after a break of not buying pens, I'd have to have been on their maintenance plan paying £20 per month, if I'm reading it right?

It feels like taking a break is a dangerous thing as you may not be allowed back on the meds with any provider. It's a bit worrying as I think I'll probably need to be on it for a long time to maintain - but I would at least like to try a few months without it and see how I go!

This is really helpful, thanks OP and others posting info.

I started with Family Chemist, then moved to Oushk because of maintenance fears, but have already ordered in addition from IQ Doctor for price. I can see I'm likely to get into a slight stockpile situation so understanding the evolving landscape is going to be key. It's obvious that these pharmacies are all engaged in heavy price wars and increasingly will be angling to have the best maintenance offerings too if they want to keep their customers.

I can't see Oushk being able to maintain the £20 monthly plan just as soon as a competitor starts to offer a free version. I agree with others that the support and calls that's supposedly included with that is not of interest to me - like most of us I suspect, this has never been a case of me not knowing what I should do - for me obesity is a chronic disease and I'd like to maintain on as low a dose as possible and then try and think as little about 'dieting' as possible.

Family Chemist definitely support Maintenance and do not charge for a monthly plan:

https://www.thefamilychemist.co.uk/maintenance-therapy-on-weight-loss-medications-wegovy-and-mounjaro/

This is a really good overview of maintenance, and worth reading even if you are not interested in swapping to them for maintenance!

That's an interesting read, thanks @IrisPallida . It's really reassuring to see pharmacies becoming clear on offering maintenance.

They're saying you can be off the medication for up to 12 months (at no cost) and go back on it - if you gain weight and have been with them from the start of treatment

"the weight gain needs to be substantial enough to warrant restarting the medication, and it’s essential that you have been my patient from the beginning of your treatment."

You can still switch to them any time as long as you have a BMI over 25.

That compares to Oushk who charge £20/month to be off the medication. They don't say if there needs to be a considerable weight gain in order for you to restart.

You can switch to them any time but if you want to move for maintenance you have to have a video consultation at cost of £5.

TFC are currently cheaper than Oushk on all levels. (monj.co.uk/discount-mounjaro-price-list/)

Oushk do give a 15% discount and free postage if you're on one of their maintenance plans, although at the higher doses I think TFC still wins out.

Hira is on the FB group apologising for problems with deliveries up to Christmas, I wonder if they are struggling with demand. This concerns me a bit for the future. I'm wondering about going with someone a bit less 'popular' as I don't need the level of support some of the FB group seem to need / demand.

It's definitely what happens with more popular providers. Look at medexpress with their constant delay and apology email. The demand will overwhelm the supply unless they hire so many people to take care of it all.

Lots of deliveries are going to be shit though, Royal Mail especially go to the dogs because of the increase in mail around Christmas. Because the meds need to be kept cold there's a time window involved which will fail if deliveries are delayed.

I doubt it's just Oushk, though I see your concern. I imagine because Oushk try to be a lot more engaged with their customer base you've seen Hira post that. I doubt MedExpress are going to be posting "soz for the delays" on their Facebook ... (do they have Facebook?)

They send their customers email messages to let them know about delays (some of them have posted it here and on other platforms, thats how I know), so I'd say they're quite engaged with them. I don't know if they have have a Facebook but they don't have a face of the company like Oushk, so a different business model.

do cloud or family chemist make you have video calls? I think I will leave med express, my bmi is still over 29, but I just don’t like the fact they won’t even consider maintenance.