Mounjaro price increase hits British consumers by up to 170% | World | News
Private healthcare providers, who also prescribe the medication, will face the increase but can negotiate confidential discounts with the company.
The decision comes amid political pressure from the United States, where former president Donald Trump has attacked what he calls “foreign freeloaders” benefiting from lower drug prices abroad whilst Americans pay substantially more.
In a speech, he singled out obesity treatments, saying a friend in London had bought the “fat shot drug” for far less than in the US.
Research by the Rand Corporation suggests that US drug prices are, on average, almost three times higher than those in many other advanced economies. The pharmaceutical sector has been striving to address the potential danger of a “most favoured nation” policy, which might tie American costs to those levied globally.
Lilly highlighted that the UK was amongst the first territories where it introduced Mounjaro and stated its initial focus had been to deliver the treatment to diabetes sufferers swiftly.
“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,” the firm stated.
Talks between pharmaceutical companies and the UK government regarding NHS medication expenses have been strained, with deliberations about modifications to a recovery levy on drug sales extending beyond agreed timelines.
The government’s latest suggestions featured plans to invest more in treatments, but industry chiefs voiced irritation at the absence of specifics or transparency on whether this would involve purchasing additional medicines or paying elevated costs for current ones.
The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) has endorsed Mounjaro for up to 3.4 million individuals in England.
Nevertheless, worries over cost-effectiveness resulted in an arrangement for a staged introduction, beginning with approximately 250,000 patients who possess the greatest clinical requirement over the initial three years. NHS England confirmed that the forthcoming price adjustments would not impact how it delivers the medication to qualifying patients with obesity or diabetes.
“Mounjaro is a cost-effective and valuable tool to support people to reach a healthier weight and the wider health and lifestyle benefits that offers,” it said.
The alterations bring the UK price nearer to the European average and arrive at a time when pharmaceutical firms are increasingly aware of how international price variations could influence future US policy decisions.
