NHS letting GPs give out Mounjaro - glad I'm not a doctor's receptionist today

[winterwonder1]

It's bad enough trying to get a GP appointment here on a normal Monday - I bet the phonelines went into meltdown at 8am this morning

NHS Mounjaro mass rollout of weight loss jabs begins today | Bradford Telegraph and Argus

I only hope it works well enough to free up some care for everyone else.

Mental health care springs to mind.

My Mum has been getting this from for a few months. Not sure how if they’ve only been allowed to use it from today. Weird!

I think the reporting has been somewhat irresponsible, as in reality very very few people meet the initial criteria. The headlines should have been clear that it isn't a mass rollout, it's an initial tranche where very few will qualify. Morbidly obese (BMI > 40) and at least 4 named weight related health conditions, to be specific.

@EnglishRain is your mum a Type 2 diabetic?

Hasn't that been the case for ages? What changed today?

What has happened today is the deadline for NHS ICBs to have developed and implemented their plan for the rollout of Mounjaro via GPs or local services rather than only by Tier 3 of specialist weight management services. So from today if your BMI is > 40 and you have 4 of the specific weight related conditions, you can go to your GP/local service and immediately be prescribed Mounjaro. Previously you would be referred to specialised Weigh Management service, possibly be on their waiting list for a while, then be expected to work through the tiers of treatment, until reaching Tier 3 and being offered bariatric surgery or possibly Wegovy if offered in your area.

They seem to think that 200,000 will be eligible under these new rules, so about 33 people in each GP Practice, so not that many. You would also think that those eligible would be known to the individual practices. Case on Jeremy Vine show today, man has been paying privately and has the necessary conditions but as he has lost weight, he’s now not eligible as his BMI has fallen to 35, but still needs to loose more weight so will have to continue paying privately.

This is just awful. So many people will be left hanging once they reach a lower BMI with no access to maintenance doses and they'll all balloon back up.

Just a pointless waste of money. Give it for life or not at all IMO.

Can anyone advise me of the 4 conditions (other than weight) that make you qualify?

Google is showing mixed answers.

@Ficklebricks is there a definitive statement that maintenance doses will not be allowed on the NHS? Mounjaro can be taken indefinitely and I would think it’s reasonable for GPs to continue prescribing it if the patient needs it to maintain a healthy weight.

@AptAptAptApt the BBC has the list of conditions as type 2 diabetes, high blood pressure, heart and vascular disease, high cholesterol and obstructive sleep apnoea

I would expect the GP's would head off a rush at the pass by adding an announcement on the phone line regarding criteria for the jab, or at least getting the receptionist to ask for BMI pre appointment.

The vast majority of people interested won't meet the criteria.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cglz4xyk7w9o

look at article @AptAptAptApt it explains a very slow roll out

Was it from a tertiary service maybe? I think the change today is that GPs can now prescribe rather than referring people.

It's now available from the GP, not a specialist service

Yeah, I don't thin individual GP surgeries will be inundated. A few migh get extra questions being asked because it's no always clear who qualifies and who doesn't. It's still a relatively slow roll out.

By picing people most at risk though, I imagine they're hoping to really get a short term bang for their buck - particularly in the context of heart disease.

It says here they have up to 12 years to roll it out to everyone who needs it https://www.worcesternews.co.uk/news/national/uk-today/24823250.nhs-mounjaro---will-eligible/

No it hasn’t been at all. It’s from today.

Exactly, @SilenceInside.

Halfway down the article linked it finally says,

’In the first year of the programme, the drug will be offered to people with a body mass index (BMI) score of over 40 who have at least four other health problems linked to obesity, such as type 2 diabetes; high blood pressure; heart disease; and obstructive sleep apnoea.’

Thats a small cohort of unwell people.

No she has had it from the GP. She is not diabetic, but considered at risk of.

That’s really strange as GPs haven been able to prescribe it for weight loss until today.

I wasn't aware it was today, but did get 3 text messages from my GP surgery today basically saying don't call us about mounjaro. Not sure why they felt my 9 year old might have been considering getting the jabs, probably could have just sent the 1 message to me.

This is very surprising and I find it hard to believe. Are you definitely getting 100% the right story from her in terms of where she's getting it, and what her health conditions are?

I am very high risk for Type 2 diabetes - it's in my family, I had gestational diabetes, I have PCOS and I am definitely overweight and I 100% do not qualify under NHS rules.

Mounjaro has been available, via the GP, for a few months now but only for overweight diabetics who also have other problems, mainly, I think heart! My friend’s DH is on it and it’s reduced not only his weight but his insulin dose. They are both hoping he will no longer be diabetic once he finishes. Time will tell!

Yes, Mounjaro has been available for T2 diabetics whose blood sugars are not well controlled by existing medications. It is prescribed for that, not for weight loss alone. You could not get Mounjaro solely for weight loss direct from a GP until today's rollout. You still can't, really, as you need the 4 weight related health conditions so "just" being super morbidly or morbidly obese still isn't sufficient to qualify you.