Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment his Department has made of the effectiveness of different funding mechanisms that could be applied to new obesity treatments.

The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) is the independent body responsible for developing authoritative, evidence-based recommendations for the National Health Service on whether new medicines represent a clinically and cost-effective use of resources. The NHS in England is legally required to fund medicines recommended in a NICE appraisal, usually within three months of final guidance.

NICE has recommended several weight loss medicines as a clinically and cost-effective use of NHS resources that are now being made available to NHS patients. The NHS is currently rolling out tirzepatide for obesity in primary care, using a phased approach based on clinical need to manage NHS resources. Around 220,000 individuals are expected to be eligible over the next three years. NHS England worked with clinical experts, integrated care boards, patient and public representatives, healthcare professionals, charities and royal colleges on its prioritisation approach, which it set out in its interim commissioning guidance, available at the following link:

https://www.england.nhs.uk/publication/interim-commissioning-guidance-implementation-of-the-nice-technology-appraisal-ta1026-and-the-nice-funding-variation-for-tirzepatide-mounjaro-for-the-management-of-obesity/

Through the Obesity Healthcare Goals programme, launched in 2022, we are working with industry and research partners to develop and test new delivery and funding models. This includes the Obesity Pathway Innovation Programme (OPIP), which is piloting community-based and pharmacy-led provision of weight management services, alongside pharmaceutical and digital interventions. The programme is supported by up to £85 million in joint funding from Government and Eli Lilly, with a portion ring-fenced for devolved administrations. These pilots will generate evidence on clinical outcomes, patient experience, and economic sustainability to inform future commissioning decisions.

The Government remains firmly committed to tackling obesity as a major public health challenge, improving access to effective interventions, and reducing health inequalities across the country.