Fewer than 800 Scots have received weight loss jabs on NHS, BBC finds

Fewer than 800 Scots have received jabs for weight loss on the NHS despite them being approved for use three years ago, BBC News has found. While private prescriptions for Wegovey and Mounjaro have soared, fewer than half of Scotland's health boards currently offer the treatment specifically for weight loss - and then only as part of small pilot schemes. Leading doctors have described the situation as "discriminatory" and argued that the lack of access on the NHS is widening health inequalities.

The Scottish government said the medicines were part of a range of treatments for obesity, and that individual health boards were responsible for decisions on the availability of medicines. A third of Scots are classified as obese, which can lead to serious health complications including cardiovascular disease, cancer and diabetes. Medications like Mounjaro and Wegovy have been prescribed for people with type 2 diabetes for many years, and are thought to have been used by thousands of patients.

These GLP-1 injections suppress people's appetites, causing them to feel fuller sooner - but are not suitable for everyone and can have side effects. Mounjaro has been approved for use specifically for weight loss on the NHS in Scotland since 2023, and Wegovy was approved in 2024. We sent a freedom of information request to every health board in Scotland, asking them if they prescribe the jabs to patients specifically for weight loss.

Five told us that they do prescribe the drugs as part of pilot projects which allow a small number of patients to access the jabs on the NHS. They are: NHS Forth Valley, NHS Borders, NHS Lothian, NHS Lanarkshire, NHS Western Isles and the NHS State Hospital. The figures showed that a total of 705 patients had received injections for weight loss by September 2026.

It has been estimated that at least 300,000 people are accessing the drugs privately, according to the company Simple Online Pharmacy. Scotland's nine other health boards say they do not currently routinely prescribe for weight loss specifically, although some are looking to introduce access. There may be some exceptional circumstances where patients in those areas are able to access the drugs.

Kathleen McClaughlin, from Laurieston, is one of the patients who can access the injections on the NHS. The 54-year-old was referred to NHS Forth Valley's programme by her gynaecologist because she needs surgery, but her weight was too high for it to go ahead safely. Having "tried and failed many times" to lose weight, she now has arthritis and other mobility issues.