Weight-loss Jabs
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As many as 2.5 million people are using weight loss jabs in the UK, but millions more should be able to afford them, Wes Streeting said. The Secretary of State for Health and Social Care mentioned during his speech at the Labour Party conference that money should not be a hindrance to acquiring potentially life-changing drugs.

'The wealthy talk about how they've transformed their health, their confidence, their quality of life. But what about the millions who can't afford them?' Streeting said during his speech, as reported by The Independent.

'That is a return to the days when health was determined by wealth. When some had access to the best care money can buy, while others waited and suffered. And I say: never again.'

His statement came after Reform UK leader Nigel Farage previously recommended that the UK must implement an insurance-based health system.

The Rise in UK Weight Loss Jab Sales

A previous report from The Telegraph revealed that sales of fat-fighting shots like Mounjaro and Wegovy reached 2.49 million back in July. It was seven times more than the sales during the same time last year, which only reached 493,000. Weight loss jabs became popular during the past year after people started using them to deal with obesity.

NHS made Mounjaro easier to get when it became available through GP practices. It was part of the health organisation's three-year plan to offer the shots to 220,000 patients in the country.

However, the NHS cannot prescribe some of these jabs for weight loss purposes. The criteria to get a prescription for weight loss are strict, even if there are approximately 3.4 million patients eligible for the jabs.

Streeting's Appeal

The call for more available weight loss jabs in the UK came after Mounjaro's owner, Eli Lilly, announced the price increase of the vaccine in the UK after being pressured by US President Donald Trump.

Streeting and the British government are currently negotiating with the pharmaceutical industry after Trump accused the UK of getting cheaper drug prices.

He explained that the UK was good at negotiating, that 'we've landed on the radar of a certain occupant of the White House because it has noticed that the drugs in the UK is considerably cheaper than in the US and maybe, not unreasonably, it's putting quite a lot of pressure to bring drug prices down.'

He also said that it is understandable why Trump is trying to get more affordable medicines for the Americans, yet it is putting pressure on the pharmaceutical sector as well as the British government.

'I feel quite confident we'll come through it and we'll come through it stronger,' he also said.

Warning About Fake Jabs

Due to the popularity of these weight loss jabs, news about scammers selling fake versions of these treatments urged a major British bank from issuing a warning against buying counterfeits.

Santander reported that their customers complained that their money had been stolen by fake sellers offering fake fat loss since its popularity increased in January.

'We know that fraudsters are masters at tapping into the latest consumer demand – but this data marks a particularly dark tactic, exploiting people's insecurities and health concerns, with scams involving weight loss products, supplements and medicines soaring in recent months,' Santander UK head of fraud Michelle Pilsworth said in an interview with The Sun.

Pilsworth also reminded the public that when a deal looks too good to be true, then skip it immediately.

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