Can My Doctor Prescribe Weight Loss Injections? (October 2026)

01 · Your options

Will my doctor prescribe weight loss injections, or should I go private?

Your doctor can prescribe Mounjaro on the NHS if you fall inside the groups currently being offered it. Mounjaro is available on the NHS, but access is phased over several years. The primary-care rollout began in June 2025 with the highest-need groups first, initially BMI 40+ with four or more qualifying conditions.⁶ NICE recommends it for adults with a BMI of at least 35 plus at least one weight-related condition.⁴

That means a GP may sincerely want to help and still be unable to prescribe yet. The reason is where you sit in the queue, not a judgement about you. If your BMI is below the current NHS stage, or you are waiting for your group to open, the question becomes what you do in the meantime.

The licence itself is broader than the current NHS stage. Mounjaro is licensed for adults with a BMI of 30 or above, or a BMI between 27 and 30 with at least one weight-related condition such as high blood pressure, high cholesterol, obstructive sleep apnoea, cardiovascular disease, prediabetes or type 2 diabetes. It is used alongside a reduced-calorie diet and increased physical activity.¹ Many people who meet these licensed criteria choose regulated private treatment rather than wait for the NHS rollout to reach them.

02 · Next steps

What should I do next?

Start with your GP. Ask whether you meet the current local NHS criteria for weight management injections, and if not, which group would come next. Bring your BMI, your weight-related conditions and a list of every medicine you take. Your GP can also check whether a different NHS service suits you better.

If you do not qualify yet or prefer not to wait, you can start a free consultation. It is a short health questionnaire with no charge and no obligation. Payment is taken when you place the order; if the prescriber decides the treatment is not suitable, the order is refunded automatically in full. We supply genuine Mounjaro KwikPens through official LillyDirect supply, and the price shown is the price paid.

You can see current doses and prices on the Mounjaro pen page, where all six doses are in stock. New customers save £40 on their first order at any dose with code FIRST40, and an automatic £25 reorder discount applies to every future order (code DOSE25). Our wider range is on the weight loss treatments page.

Free next-day tracked delivery in temperature-controlled packaging is included, with same-day dispatch when ordered by 3pm. Saturday delivery is £14.99.

03 · NHS eligibility

Who is eligible for NHS weight loss injections?

Eligibility on the NHS is set by NICE guidance and then phased in by NHS England. NICE recommends Mounjaro for adults with a BMI of at least 35 plus at least one weight-related condition.⁴ That is the recommended population, but not everyone in it can be treated at once. Access is being phased in over several years.

The primary-care rollout began in June 2025 with the highest-need groups first. The initial group was people with a BMI of 40 or above and four or more qualifying conditions.⁶ Later groups follow as capacity builds. Full rollout is expected to take years, so there is no single date on which everyone who meets the NICE threshold becomes eligible.

In practice there are two layers. The first is the NICE recommendation: a BMI threshold plus at least one weight-related condition. The second is the rollout stage: which group your local NHS service is currently treating. A person can meet the first layer and still be waiting for the second.

Weight-related conditions named in the licensing information include high blood pressure, high cholesterol, obstructive sleep apnoea, cardiovascular disease, prediabetes and type 2 diabetes.¹ Your GP will know which of these appear in your record. If you have a condition you have never discussed in a weight context, raise it at your appointment, because it may change which group you fall into.

The injection is not given on its own. It is used alongside a reduced-calorie diet and increased physical activity.¹ An NHS service will therefore usually discuss lifestyle support with you at the same time. Treat that as part of the programme, not a hurdle placed in your way.

Practical questions to take to your GP are simple. Do I meet the NICE recommendation? Which rollout group am I in locally? Is there a service I can be referred to? If I am not eligible yet, what would change that, and when should I come back? Writing the answers down helps, because rollout details are updated over time. Our guide on whether your doctor can prescribe Mounjaro covers the same ground in more detail.

Once you know where you stand, you can decide whether to wait for your NHS group or look at a regulated private prescriber in the meantime. Neither route is wrong. The right one depends on your eligibility, your timeline and how you feel about waiting.

04 · Why a GP may say no

Why won't my doctor prescribe weight loss medication?

The most common reason is that the NHS rollout has not yet reached your group. Access is phased, with the highest-need groups first, initially BMI 40+ with four or more qualifying conditions.⁶ If your BMI or health conditions place you in a later group, your GP may be unable to prescribe Mounjaro through the NHS right now, even though you are clinically a reasonable candidate under the licence.

A second reason is clinical suitability. A prescriber assesses your BMI, medical history and current medicines before deciding whether Mounjaro is suitable.¹ Some medicines need attention. For example, because Mounjaro slows stomach emptying it can affect how quickly some oral medicines are absorbed, and insulin or sulfonylurea doses may need reducing to avoid low blood sugar.¹ A GP who is careful about these points is doing their job.

A third reason is the weight threshold. The licence covers a BMI of 30 or above, or 27 to 30 with a weight-related condition. Below those thresholds the medicine is outside its licensed use, and a prescriber should not supply it for weight management.

How to have a productive conversation

If you are asking how to convince a doctor to prescribe, reframe the goal: you are not trying to persuade, you are giving them what they need to assess you. Bring your height and weight, your BMI, a list of weight-related conditions and every medicine you take. Mention what you have already tried, such as changes to diet and activity, because treatment works alongside those changes, not instead of them.

Ask direct questions. Am I eligible under the current NHS criteria? If not, which group would I fall into, and is there a waiting list? Is there a local weight-management service you can refer me to? Is there anything in my medical history that would make this unsuitable?

Be ready for a no. A no today is not a no forever, because the rollout widens over time. Ask when to come back and whether any change in your health, such as a new weight-related diagnosis, would alter the answer.

It also helps to know what the treatment can and cannot do. In the SURMOUNT-1 trial of 2,539 adults, people taking tirzepatide alongside diet and exercise lost on average 15% of their body weight on 5mg, 19.5% on 10mg and 20.9% on 15mg over 72 weeks, compared with 3.1% with lifestyle changes alone. These are trial averages and individual results vary.² Showing you understand this tells your doctor you have realistic expectations.

If your GP cannot help, our guide to whether your doctor can prescribe Mounjaro for weight loss explains the alternatives.

05 · The private route

How does private prescribing work?

A private prescription starts with a free online consultation, which is a short health questionnaire with no charge and no obligation. A GPhC-registered prescriber reviews your answers; this is a clinical review, not a scoring script. Payment is taken when you place the order; if the prescriber decides the treatment is not suitable, the order is refunded automatically in full.

The prescriber applies the licensed criteria. Mounjaro is licensed for weight management in adults with a BMI of 30 or above, or a BMI between 27 and 30 with at least one weight-related condition such as high blood pressure, high cholesterol, obstructive sleep apnoea, cardiovascular disease, prediabetes or type 2 diabetes. It must be used alongside a reduced-calorie diet and increased physical activity.¹ Your BMI, medical history and current medicines are assessed before a decision is made.

This is the main difference from the current NHS stage. NHS rollout is phased, starting with the highest-need groups, while the licence describes who the medicine is approved for. A private prescriber works from the licence and their clinical judgement about you.

What you get with us

We are a GPhC-registered UK online pharmacy (registration 9012878), and our medicine is supplied through official LillyDirect supply, direct from Eli Lilly's UK distribution. You receive genuine KwikPens. Our pharmacy dispenses your order, with same-day dispatch when ordered by 3pm, then free next-day tracked delivery in discreet, temperature-controlled packaging. Needles, a sharps bin and injection guidance are included with every order.

After the first order, ongoing monthly reviews, dose-titration and follow-up assessments are carried out by the prescribing team, with side-effect support. Repeat orders re-check suitability and nothing is shipped automatically. There are no subscriptions. You can pay by Visa or Mastercard, Klarna, or pay-monthly options.

Counterfeit safety

Prescription-only injectables should only come from a registered pharmacy after a consultation. Be wary of anyone offering to supply without a consultation or prescription, or selling unlabelled pens. The MHRA publishes counterfeit medicine alerts and runs the Yellow Card scheme for reporting side effects.⁷ You can check any pharmacy on the GPhC register.

When you are ready, the Mounjaro ordering page walks through each step. If your question is about injections more generally, the guide on whether your doctor can give you weight loss injections is a good companion.

This page is information and not a substitute for medical advice. Mounjaro is a prescription-only medicine, supplied only after an online consultation reviewed by a GPhC-registered prescriber. Individual results vary.

06 · What Mounjaro is

What weight loss medication can a doctor prescribe?

The weight loss injection discussed most often is Mounjaro, the brand name for tirzepatide, a once-weekly injectable prescription medicine made by Eli Lilly. In the UK it is licensed for weight management in adults and for type 2 diabetes. It comes as a pre-filled multi-dose pen (KwikPen) in six strengths: 2.5mg, 5mg, 7.5mg, 10mg, 12.5mg and 15mg.¹

Wegovy (semaglutide) is another once-weekly weight management injection. Its pens are 0.25mg, 0.5mg, 1mg, 1.7mg and 2.4mg, with titration stepping up after at least 4 weeks and reaching the 2.4mg maintenance dose from week 17.¹⁸ Liraglutide (Saxenda) is a daily injection, unlike the once-weekly options. NHS access to Wegovy runs through specialist weight-management services; ask your GP. Which medicine suits you is a prescriber's decision, based on your history and circumstances.

How tirzepatide works

Tirzepatide is the first treatment of its kind to activate two natural gut-hormone receptors at once: GIP and GLP-1. Together these help regulate appetite, slow how quickly the stomach empties, and improve the way the body responds to insulin. In practice, most people feel fuller sooner and less hungry between meals, which supports a reduced-calorie diet.¹ This dual action distinguishes Mounjaro from single-action GLP-1 medicines such as semaglutide.

The medicine has a half-life of about five days, so after a final dose it takes roughly 4–5 weeks to clear the system. There is no way to speed this up, and nothing needs doing while it clears.¹

What the trials show

In the SURMOUNT-1 trial of 2,539 adults, people taking tirzepatide alongside diet and exercise lost on average 15% of their body weight on 5mg, 19.5% on 10mg and 20.9% on 15mg over 72 weeks, compared with 3.1% with lifestyle changes alone. At 72 weeks, 85% of participants on 5mg, 89% on 10mg and 91% on 15mg had lost at least 5% of their body weight. Half of participants on 10mg and 57% on 15mg lost at least 20%.²

A worked example: for someone starting at 100 kg, 20.9% is about 21 kg. That is straight arithmetic on a trial average, not a forecast for you. Trial averages do not predict your own result, and treatment works alongside a reduced-calorie diet and increased physical activity, not instead of them.

The SURMOUNT-5 trial is the one that directly compared tirzepatide with semaglutide in adults with obesity.¹⁵ Results from separate trials should not be set side by side as if they were head to head, so if you are choosing between the two, ask your prescriber to talk it through with your history in mind.

For the broader question of prescribing this class of medicine, see our page on whether your doctor can prescribe you GLP-1 medicines, and the related guide on GLP-1 for weight loss.

07 · Doses and pace

How are doses increased, and how fast are results?

Everyone starts Mounjaro on 2.5mg once a week. This starting dose is about letting your body adjust, not about weight loss itself. After at least 4 weeks the dose increases to 5mg, and can then step up by 2.5mg at a minimum of 4-week intervals (7.5mg, 10mg, 12.5mg) up to a maximum of 15mg weekly, depending on how you respond and tolerate it.¹ Many people settle at a maintenance dose of 5mg, 10mg or 15mg. Higher is not automatically better, and your prescriber will guide the right pace.

Each KwikPen contains four weekly doses.¹

Realistic pace

Weight loss on Mounjaro is gradual by design. The first weeks on 2.5mg are an adjustment phase and losses are usually modest. Most measurable progress builds from 5mg onward, month by month. Trials measured results at 72 weeks, so think in months, not days, and judge progress by trend, not individual weigh-ins.¹

Early loss includes water weight, so the trend over weeks matters more than any single weigh-in.¹

Review point

Treatment response is reviewed by your prescriber. If you have lost less than 5% of your starting weight after 6 months on the highest dose you can tolerate, your prescriber will discuss whether continuing or stopping is right for you.¹ How long you stay on treatment is a decision made with your prescriber at reviews, based on how you respond and tolerate it.

Keeping to the licensed doses

Altering doses outside the licence means unknown dosing accuracy and no safety data.¹

A prescriber, whether NHS or private, is looking for steady progress on a dose you tolerate, not the fastest possible titration. That is the pace you can reasonably expect to discuss with your GP too.

08 · Using it safely

How do you inject Mounjaro and use it safely?

Mounjaro is injected under the skin (subcutaneously) once a week, on the same day each week, at any time of day, with or without food. Licensed sites are the stomach area (at least 5cm from the belly button), the front of the thigh, or the back of the upper arm if someone else gives the injection. Rotate the site with each dose.¹³ There is no best time of day: it works the same morning or evening. Many people choose a weekend morning so early side effects fall on days off.

Missed doses and changing your day

If you miss a dose, take it as soon as you can within 4 days (96 hours) of the scheduled time, then carry on with your usual day. If more than 4 days have passed, skip the missed dose entirely and take the next one on your normal day. Never take two doses within 3 days of each other.¹ You can change your injection day if at least 3 days (72 hours) have passed since your last dose.

Other medicines

Because Mounjaro slows stomach emptying, it can affect how quickly some oral medicines are absorbed, particularly when you start treatment or increase the dose. Tell your prescriber about everything you take, especially warfarin or other narrow-margin medicines, insulin, or sulfonylureas, where doses may need reducing to avoid low blood sugar. No adjustment is needed for paracetamol.¹ Mounjaro slows stomach emptying, which can reduce how well oral contraceptive pills are absorbed.⁷ The SmPC advises switching to a non-oral method, or adding a barrier method (such as condoms), for 4 weeks after starting Mounjaro and for 4 weeks after each dose increase.¹ Raise this with your prescriber before starting.

Early effects

Mild nausea, altered appetite and tiredness in the first days after each injection are the commonest early effects and usually settle.¹ If you have a symptom that worries you, or a new one appears, speak to your prescriber. You can also report suspected side effects through the MHRA Yellow Card scheme.¹⁹

Storage and travel

Keep pens in a fridge at 2–8°C and never freeze them. Once in use, a pen can be kept out of the fridge not above 30°C for up to 30 days, after which it should be discarded. Keep the cap on to protect it from light, and never use a pen that has been frozen.¹

You can fly with Mounjaro. Carry pens in hand luggage, because hold luggage can fall below freezing, ideally in a cool bag with the prescription label or a copy of your prescription. In-use pens tolerate up to 30 days not above 30°C, so most holidays need no special arrangements; use an insulated pouch for hot climates. Check destination rules before you fly. Unopened pens stay in the fridge and keep until the expiry date on the box. If an unopened pen has been out of the fridge, check with the pharmacy before using it rather than relying on a remembered day limit.¹³

If your question involves another healthcare professional, such as a specialist or nurse prescriber, see our pages on whether a gastroenterologist can prescribe weight loss medication and whether a PMHNP can prescribe weight loss medication.

09 · Cost over a year

What does private treatment cost over a year?

Planning a year of private treatment is mostly about which dose you settle at. These are standard prices before discounts; a new customer's first order is £40 less, and every later order is £25 off the standard price.

If you step up after 4 weeks on each dose, your first four pens (2.5mg to 10mg) cost £959.96 at standard prices. Your prescriber steps you up at a minimum of 4-week intervals, depending on how you respond.¹

A first year (13 pens) costs £2,711.88 if you stay on 5mg after your 2.5mg starting pen, up to £3,599.88 if you step up through every dose to 15mg. If you settle at 7.5mg, 10mg or 12.5mg, the monthly standard prices are £279.99, £290.99 and £319.99 respectively, one pen being four weeks.

Your first 2.5mg pen costs £129.99 with code FIRST40 (standard price £169.99). If you are switching to us at 15mg, your first order is £289.99. For every later order, the discount is £25 off the standard price (code DOSE25).

How our prices sit against the market

Across the UK pharmacies we track, Mounjaro pens ranged from £143.96 to £339.00 per month across all doses, as of 10 October 2026. For the 2.5mg starting pen the range was £143.96 to £179.99. The gap between providers for the same dose ran from £27 to £41. Boots' Mounjaro dose prices ran from £179.00 to £339.00.

Eli Lilly raised the UK list price of Mounjaro, effective 1 September 2025, and pharmacy sell prices vary because of confidential discounts.¹⁰ That is why we show our prices live rather than fixing them in text.

What the price includes

The consultation is free, the price shown is the price paid, and there are no hidden fees. Free next-day tracked delivery, needles, a sharps bin and injection guidance are included. Ongoing monthly clinical reviews are part of the service, and there is no subscription lock-in. You can also use the free GLPTrackr companion app to track your journey on iOS or Android.

On the NHS the cost to you is different: England's prescription charge is £9.90 per item unless you are exempt. You can compare options on our Mounjaro ordering page.

10 · Serious side effects

Serious side effects: when to get help straight away

Serious side effects are uncommon but need urgent attention. Seek immediate medical help for: severe, persistent stomach pain that may spread to your back, with or without vomiting (possible pancreatitis); pain in the upper right abdomen, fever or yellowing of skin/eyes (possible gallbladder problems); or signs of a severe allergic reaction such as swelling of the face or throat and difficulty breathing. If you take insulin or a sulfonylurea alongside Mounjaro, watch for low blood sugar (shakiness, sweating, confusion) — your prescriber may need to adjust those medicines.¹

11 · Ordering steps

How does ordering work if I go private?

Ordering takes four stages, from a free consultation to delivery.

Step 1: free online consultation. You complete a short health questionnaire. There is no charge and no obligation, and you can begin your consultation here. Have your height, weight, medical conditions and current medicines to hand, since the prescriber will want all four.

Step 2: prescriber review. A GPhC-registered prescriber reviews your answers. It is a clinical review, not a scoring script. Payment is taken when you place the order; if the prescriber decides the treatment is not suitable, the order is refunded automatically in full.

Step 3: dispensing and dispatch. If approved, our registered pharmacy dispenses your genuine KwikPen. Same-day dispatch applies when you order by 3pm.

Step 4: delivery. Free next-day tracked delivery by DPD arrives in discreet, temperature-controlled packaging. Saturday delivery is £14.99. Needles, a sharps bin and injection guidance are included with every order.

What happens after the first pen

Dose changes are not left to guesswork. Monthly reviews, dose-titration and follow-up assessments are carried out by the prescribing team, with side-effect support. When you reorder, your suitability is checked again, and nothing ships automatically. If your circumstances change, such as a new diagnosis or a new medicine, tell the prescribing team before your next order.

Dispensed prescription medicines cannot be returned except where an item is faulty, damaged or wrong; contact us within 3 days in those cases. Refunds take 5–10 working days.

Support

Our support team is available Monday to Friday, 9am to 5pm, by email at support@everydaymeds.co.uk, through the account portal chat, or by phone on 0333 207 0413.

You can pay with Visa or Mastercard, Klarna, or pay-monthly options. Over 100,000 customers have been supported on their weight loss journey with us, which tells you about the scale of our service, not about any individual outcome. Our current offers are on the Mounjaro pen page, where new customers can save £40 on their first order with code FIRST40.

If you are unsure whether to ask your GP first, there is no conflict in doing both. You can see your GP about NHS eligibility and, in parallel, have a private prescriber review your consultation. Whatever you choose, tell every prescriber about all your medicines so they can check for interactions.