Weight management medication

Last updated 23 September 2025:

The new weight management medication, Tirzepatide (also known as Mounjaro®) has been approved for NHS patients to support weight management.

NHS Staffordshire and Stoke-on-Trent has created a GP-led hub model across the county; eligible patients will be invited by prescribing hubs for assessment. This means those with the most urgent clinical need will be seen first, and you may have to wait until you are invited for assessment.

Please do not contact your GP, as they will not be able to assess your eligibility or prescribe you Mounjaro for weight management.

Eligibility criteria for Mounjaro

Following approval by NICE, tirzepatide (Mounjaro®) will be available on the NHS for eligible patients who meet the strict, nationally-set, criteria.  

Staffordshire and Stoke-on-Trent Integrated Care Board uses the NHS England-set criteria, which states that patients must have:

• A BMI of 40 or higher (at the time of your assessment) or 37.5 or greater for individuals from certain ethnic backgrounds
• Four more of these qualifying conditions:
  • hypertension (high blood pressure)
  • dyslipidaemia (abnormal levels of lipids in the bloodstream)
  • obstructive sleep apnoea (when your breathing stops and starts while you sleep)
  • cardiovascular disease (a general term for conditions affecting the heart or blood vessels)
  • type 2 diabetes (a common, chronic condition where the body doesn’t make enough insulin or the insulin it produces doesn’t work effectively, leading to high blood glucose levels).

Patients meeting the above criteria will be eligible for assessment to identify their suitability for Mounjaro. Eligible patients will be invited for assessment by primary care weight management hubs; patients with the most urgent clinical need being invited first.

Anyone not meeting this criteria will not be eligible for assessment in the first year of the drug being available to NHS patients. 

Please do not contact your GP; if you are eligible to be assessed you will be contacted over the coming months and invited to attend an appointment for assessment. Those with the greatest clinical need will be contacted first, so this may mean you have to wait a little longer for an appointment, however it is our intention that anyone who meets the above criteria will have been invited for an assessment over the next 12 months. 

GP-led hubs created to assess patients’ eligibility

The service in Staffordshire and Stoke-on-Trent will be provided by General Practice ‘hubs’, this means you may be asked to attend a location that is not your normal GP practice but will still be accessible. GP practices have been asked to work together to ensure that you have better access to the specialist skills needed to deliver a holistic lifestyle assessment. The hubs will be managed by GPs from your local ‘primary care network (PCN)’ and your registered GP will be updated with all your progress and assessments. 

We recognise that a number of patients who have been taking the medication privately will be affected by the announcement of 14^th August, outlining price increases to the Mounjaro injections. The NHS position still remains the same; we will only be offering the injection to those who meet the criteria set out above. Your GP will be able to support you with a conversation about managing your weight but will not be able to prescribe Mounjaro for weight management alone.  

If you are looking for support to help you manage your weight you can find useful information and resources on the ICS website at https://staffsstokeics.org.uk/local-weight-management-services/.

Patients with a complaint about this matter, should contact the Patient Advisory Liaison Services at patientservices@staffsstoke.icb.nhs.uk . 

Mounjaro and patient choice

NHS Staffordshire and Stoke-on-Trent is committed to giving patients greater choice and control over how they receive their health care, in line with the NHS Constitution and the NHS Choice Framework. 

Staffordshire and Stoke-on-Trent Integrated Care Board works with referrers, including GPs, to ensure they are aware of patients’ right to choose, and that appropriate information is available at the point of referral to ensure that an informed choice can be made. 

As set out in the NHS Constitution, you have a number of choices concerning care and treatment as a patient. These choices include but are not limited to: 

• The right to choose which hospital or service to go to if your GP needs to refer you to see a specialist for a physical or mental health condition as defined in National Guidance 
• The right to be involved in decisions about your healthcare and to be given the information you need to do this 
• These are not the only choices you can make. There are choices in your lifestyle, decisions about your treatment, and even the way in which you interact with doctors and other health professionals that can all affect your health. 

Patients wishing to be prescribed Mounjaro will not be able to use their rights under the NHS Choice Framework; this is because the model for prescribing Mounjaro in Staffordshire and Stoke-on-Trent does not meet the criteria for patient choice.

To find out more please visit Your choices in the NHS – NHS (www.nhs.uk). 

Oviva

We are aware that GPs are also still receiving enquiries about the availability of Oviva (Wegovy) in Staffordshire ad Stoke-on-Trent.

Staffordshire and Stoke-on-TrentT ICB does not commission a tier 3 weight management service from Oviva in Staffordshire and Stoke on Trent.  In line with NICE and NHSE guidance, weight management injections will be made available to eligible patients through a locally commissioned service from the end of June 2025.

Weight Management Services and Pregnancy / Contraception

Women taking medicines for weight loss and diabetes should continue to use effective contraception while taking these medicines, and in some cases for up to two months between stopping the medicine and trying to become pregnant. 

The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency has warned that prescribed medication, such as Mounjaro, must not be taken during pregnancy, while trying to get pregnant or during breastfeeding. Anyone who gets pregnant while using them should speak to their healthcare professional and stop the medicine as soon as possible. This is because there is not enough safety data to know whether taking the medicine could cause harm to the baby. 

Effective contraception includes oral (the pill) and non-oral (the implant, coil or condoms) forms of contraception.

Mounjaro may reduce the effectiveness of oral contraceptives in those who are overweight. Those taking Mounjaro who are overweight and are using an oral form of contraceptive are advised to also use a non-oral form of contraception. This only applies to those taking Mounjaro, and is especially important for the four weeks after starting Mounjaro and after any dose increase. 

The full advice can be found on the regulator’s website. It comes after concerns from the UK regulator that some people are not using these medicines for weight loss and diabetes safely. 

Information for people accessing weight management medication outside the NHS

I am receiving weight management medication but want to get it through the NHS

If you have been prescribed weight management medication, but want to be prescribed through the NHS, you will need to be assessed to confirm you are eligible for Mounjaro, based on the criteria above.

Even if you are currently receiving weight management medication, but not prescribed by the NHS, you may have to wait to be called in for assessment. Patients whose clinical records show they may be eligible for assessment are being invited in to the new primary care weight management hubs for assessment to check they meet the eligibility criteria before being prescribed any medication.

I am thinking about accessing weight management medication, but not through the NHS

If you are considering accessing weight management medication, but are not eligible for NHS assessment or prescriptions, you will be responsible for providing your own clincical records to your provider. Your GP cannot provide them for you, but they can give them to you so you can pass them on. 

Can I refer myself to the weight management hub to be assessed?

No. The ICB’s weight management hubs are not a referral pathway. GPs will not be able to refer patients to the hubs; eligible patients will be invited to attend an assessment based on their medical records and who will have the most clinical benefit. Those most in need will be invited first.

Weight management medication Q&A

Below you will find the most commonly asked questions about weight management medication:

*Due to an increased risk of health conditions in lower thresholds in these populations, the BMI applied to assess eligibility for Mounjaro® is set at 37.5 for people from South Asian, Chinese, other Asian, Middle Eastern, Black African or African-Caribbean ethnic backgrounds to ensure equitable clinical prioritisation and access to appropriate treatment. 

For more information about alternative local weight management services, visit the ICS website – Local Weight Management services – Staffordshire and Stoke-on-Trent, ICS .