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Are weight-loss jabs free in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland?

GLP Guidebook teamUpdated 12 Oct 202615 sourcesWritten from published sources
The short answer

On an NHS prescription, yes. Prescriptions are free in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland, so an NHS pen of Mounjaro (tirzepatide) or Wegovy (semaglutide) costs you nothing there. But NHS access is narrow, mostly through specialist services, and private treatment is paid for in full. England charges £9.90 an item.

Before you go further
  • Mounjaro and Wegovy, like every GLP‑1 medicine, are prescription-only medicines in the UK. A healthcare professional must assess you before either can be prescribed.1
  • The figures here are official prescription charges. We never quote a seller's price, and we don't name or rank sellers.
  • To spot fake pens and illegal sellers, see Is it safe to buy Mounjaro online in the UK? The risks are in Guide 5: Side effects and risks.
  • Nothing here promises any result, and nothing here is for sale.

What does an NHS prescription cost in each nation?

Each UK nation sets its own prescription charges, and only England charges, at £9.90 an item, while the other 3 nations make NHS prescriptions free.

  • Scotland: "Prescriptions in Scotland are free." A prescription written in England is charged £9.90 an item there.2
  • Wales: if you are registered with a GP in Wales, prescriptions from a pharmacist in Wales are free.3
  • Northern Ireland: "All prescriptions dispensed in Northern Ireland are free of charge for everyone."4
  • England: £9.90 an item, or £114.50 for a 12-month prepayment certificate.5 Diabetes treated with medicine qualifies for an exemption.6

Who can get Mounjaro or Wegovy on the NHS outside England?

Free prescriptions only help if the NHS prescribes the medicine, and in October 2026 all 3 nations still limited that to small groups.

  • Scotland: Mounjaro is accepted for a BMI of 30 or more with a weight-related condition.7 A 2024 NHS Scotland statement set the first phase at a BMI of 38 or more.8 Wegovy is for specialist services.9
  • Wales: both are prescribed for weight only through specialist services. Exceptions include urgent surgery, transplants and fertility treatment.10,11
  • Northern Ireland: neither was available for weight in April 2025.12 A new service starting in autumn 2026 first covers adults with a BMI above 45 and a listed condition.13

England's rules are in Can I get Mounjaro on the NHS?

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Is private treatment free anywhere in the UK?

No. The MHRA notes GLP-1 medicines "can also be purchased privately", and in that case you pay for the medicine and the consultation yourself.

Northern Ireland's formulary leaflet adds that GPs cannot take over private prescribing on the Health Service.1,12 List prices are in How much is Mounjaro in the UK? and How much is Wegovy in the UK? How prescribing works is in Guide 6.

RisksThe risks, in brief
  • Stomach effects are very common. On the UK labels, 25 to 29 in 100 people on Mounjaro 5 mg to 15 mg felt sick in weight trials, against 9 in 100 on a dummy injection. For Wegovy 2.4 mg it was 44 in 100, against 16 in 100.14,15
  • A swollen pancreas (acute pancreatitis) is uncommon (1 in 100 to 1 in 1,000) on both UK labels, and gallstones are common (1 in 10 to 1 in 100) in the weight trials.14,15
  • Pregnancy. The MHRA says to stop Mounjaro at least 1 month, and Wegovy at least 2 months, before trying for a baby. Mounjaro can also make the pill less reliable for a while.1
Full detail in Guide 5: Side effects and risks →

Read the full picture

Related questions

Can I get Mounjaro on the NHS? Can my GP prescribe Wegovy? How much is Mounjaro in the UK? How much is Wegovy in the UK? What BMI do you need for Mounjaro in the UK?
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Sources

  1. MHRA. GLP-1 medicines for weight loss and diabetes: what you need to know. Guidance, published 5 Jun 2025, last updated 5 Feb 2026. gov.uk
  2. NHS inform (Scotland). Prescription charges and exemptions: "Prescriptions in Scotland are free"; English prescription forms are charged "at the current English rate of £9.90 per item". nhsinform.scot
  3. Welsh Government. Free prescriptions: "If you are registered with a GP in Wales you are entitled to free prescriptions from a pharmacist in Wales". gov.wales
  4. nidirect (Northern Ireland). Help with health costs: "All prescriptions dispensed in Northern Ireland are free of charge for everyone". nidirect.gov.uk
  5. NHS Business Services Authority. NHS Prescription Prepayment Certificate (PPC): "The prescription charge in England is £9.90"; PPC £32.05 for 3 months, £114.50 for 12 months. nhsbsa.nhs.uk
  6. NHS Business Services Authority. Medical exemption certificates: covers "diabetes mellitus, except where treatment is by diet alone". nhsbsa.nhs.uk
  7. Scottish Medicines Consortium. Tirzepatide (Mounjaro) SMC2653: "accepted for restricted use within NHSScotland"; restriction "adults with BMI ≥30 kg/m2* and at least one weight-related comorbidity" (*lower cut-off may be more appropriate for some minority ethnic groups). Advice published 10 Jun 2024. scottishmedicines.org.uk
  8. NHS Lanarkshire. Clinical protocol: Tirzepatide (Mounjaro) as an adjunct to lifestyle measures in weight management, approved Jan 2025: "An NHS Scotland consensus statement was published in September 2024. It stated that the first phase of implementation of the SMC guidance should be those with a BMI of ≥ 38 kg/m2 in the presence of at least one weight-related co-morbidity." rightdecisions.scot.nhs.uk (PDF)
  9. Scottish Medicines Consortium. Semaglutide (Wegovy) SMC2497: restriction "BMI of ≥30kg/m2* in the presence of at least one weight-related comorbidity. Patients should be treated in a specialist weight management service." Advice published 9 Oct 2023. scottishmedicines.org.uk
  10. Welsh Government. New clinical pathway for treating and managing obesity (WHC/2025/043): "tirzepatide, semaglutide and liraglutide, for weight loss should only be prescribed through specialist weight management services in the NHS in Wales", with listed exceptions. First published 23 Oct 2025, last updated 7 Jul 2026. gov.wales
  11. Welsh Government. People waiting for time-sensitive surgery get weight loss drugs on NHS. Press release, 23 Oct 2025 (about 186,000 people in Wales potentially eligible). gov.wales
  12. Northern Ireland Formulary (HSC). Patient information leaflet: Tirzepatide (Mounjaro) for obesity, April 2025: "not currently available through the Health Service in Northern Ireland for the treatment of obesity"; Wegovy and Saxenda "not yet available" because NI "does NOT currently have such a specialist weight management service"; "GPs cannot take over prescribing on the Health Service". niformulary.hscni.net (PDF)
  13. Department of Health (Northern Ireland). Health Minister announces first phase of NI's first Obesity Management Service, 29 Jun 2026: rollout "expected… in early Autumn 2026"; phase one "for adults aged 18 and over with a BMI above 45 and at least one" listed condition. health-ni.gov.uk
  14. Eli Lilly. Mounjaro KwikPen summary of product characteristics (UK SmPC), date of revision 29 Aug 2026, sections 4.1, 4.2, 4.4, 4.5, 4.6 and 4.8 (Table 1). UK label. medicines.org.uk (emc)
  15. Novo Nordisk. Wegovy FlexTouch summary of product characteristics (UK SmPC), date of revision 09/2026, sections 4.2 and 4.8 (Table 3). UK label. medicines.org.uk (emc)

Last checked 12 Oct 2026 · Next review due 12 Apr 2027 · Report an error

How this answer was made. Written by the GLP Guidebook team from the sources above, all checked on 12 Oct 2026. Prices are official list prices or NHS charges, never a seller's price, and we don't name or rank sellers. Figures marked as our arithmetic are worked out from those sources. It's general information, not medical advice. Talk to a GP, pharmacist or other qualified prescriber before starting, stopping or changing any medicine. How we write