Updated Information Regarding Tirzepatide (Mounjaro)

NICE Update on Tirzepatide

On December 23rd 2024, the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) released an update regarding Tirzepatide, a new medication for managing obesity in addition to its use in diabetes. 

Long-Term Availability

Tirzepatide could take up to 12 years to become fully available to all eligible patients. This will require the development of a new service for primary care and training of healthcare professionals.

Eligible Patients

NHS England and NICE have approved the use of Tirzepatide, which you may also know as Mounjaro® or ‘the weight loss drug’, from primary care. You may well hear that Tirzepatide is available from primary care from 23rd June 2025. However, in the first two years entry criteria have been set by NHS England to a very small number of people. This is to allow safe entry of this repurposed medicine into the health system.

Please only contact us if you are eligible, this means you have a BMI of 40 or higher and at least four of these additional conditions, which will already have been diagnosed by your GP or another medical professional:

• Hypertension
• Dyslipidaemia
• Obstructive sleep apnoea
• Atherosclerotic Cardiovascular Disease (ASCVD)
• Type 2 diabetes mellitus

What happens next?

As mentioned, the availability of this treatment on the NHS will be phased in gradually, with those that are most likely to benefit from it given access first.  Once details of this become available, eligible patients will be contacted.  Please do not book an appointment or phone to discuss if you are eligible. We will update this statement once we hear more from the local NHS

If you would like other support with weight loss please do request an appointment clearly stating this via System Connect.

Private supply

More patients are now seeking to have weight loss injections prescribed privately. We are unable to discuss eligibility or suitability with you, and it is the responsibility of the private prescriber to discuss this with you. Please do not book an appointment to discuss this. Ensure you let the practice know if you are receiving these injections, so we can make note to ensure we are not prescribing medications that could interfere or cause problems with the injections.

Published: Apr 30, 2025