Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of making the drug Monjaro available on the NHS.
The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) is the independent body that makes recommendations for the National Health Service on whether new medicines should be routinely funded by the NHS based on the evidence of their costs and benefits.
Tirzepatide (Mounjaro) is recommended by NICE for the treatment of both type 2 diabetes and obesity. Integrated care boards (ICBs) are legally required to fund NICE-recommended medicines, normally within three months of the publication of NICE’s guidance.
NICE’s guidance on the use of tirzepatide for managing overweight and obesity is subject to a longer implementation period which was agreed to manage the impact on primary care services in a sustainable way. Access is being prioritised for patients with the greatest clinical need and will be rolled out to all eligible patients over time. Further information on the criteria for the roll-out of tirzepatide on the NHS can be found on NICE’s website, at the following link: