In News

Follow this topic

Bookmark

Record learning outcomes

Mounjaro manufacturer Eli Lilly has raised the UK price of the drug from £122 to £330 for a month’s supply from September in response to pressure from US president Donald Trump.

The move, aimed at bringing the UK market price in line with other developed countries, will see the price for a month’s supply of the highest dose rise by 170 per cent and prices for lower doses rise by between 45 and 138 per cent for consumers who buy it through the private sector. 

“We are now aligning the list price more consistently,” said Lilly, though it added there will be no increase to the price paid by the NHS at present. 

NHS England has announced plans to roll the drug, used to treat type 2 diabetes and obesity, out to 250,000 patients over the next three years, while NICE has recommended that it should be prescribed to up to 3.4 million people in England. 

The move comes amid sustained pressure from Mr Trump regarding the much higher prices American patients pay for their medicines, with the president saying he wishes to stop Americans being “ripped off” by “foreign freeloaders”.

“At launch, Lilly agreed to a UK list price that is significantly below the European average to prevent delays in NHS availability. With changes in the environment and new clinical evidence supporting the value of Mounjaro, we are now aligning the list price more consistently to ensure fair global contributions to the cost of innovation,” said Lilly. 

Lilly said it was speaking to private healthcare providers in the UK such as online pharmacies to ensure continued access to the drug.