Weight-loss jabs rollout is paused as Wales not ready

GPs will continue to be blocked from prescribing new weight-loss drugs by the Welsh Government because NHS Wales is not ready for the huge demand.

- CHRIS HAINES

Injection pen of Mounjaro, the tirzepatide weight loss medication

(Niall Carson)

Around 186,000 people in Wales are estimated to be eligible for tirzepatide (Mounjaro) alone, which has been approved by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) for managing obesity.

But because the Welsh NHS cannot handle this level of demand, the rollout is being paused while a new “clinical pathway” is developed to build capacity.