Doctor Highlights Stark Inequality in Mounjaro Pricing

Doctor warns Mounjaro price hike could deepen healthcare inequality

Upcoming price increases for the weight-loss drug Mounjaro risk widening the healthcare divide, a UK doctor has warned.

The move follows an announcement from manufacturer Eli Lilly that the drug’s list price for private patients in the UK will rise by up to 170%, after being sold at what the company described as “significantly below” European rates.

Dr. Mayoni Gooneratne, a UK-based practitioner and co-founder of Guernsey Women’s Wellness, said the decision would leave access to the drug largely determined by income.

“If we are offering something and then taking it away—making it financially available only to people who can afford high prices—you are going to cause a massive divide and further inequality,” she said. “This is health inequality in full play.”

Local impact unclear

Pharmacies in Guernsey told the BBC they still had existing stock but were uncertain how future price rises would affect supply.

In Jersey, Public Health officials said government and experts were reviewing whether the island should adopt UK policy and planned to report findings in September.

Matthew Johnson of LV Pharmacy added: “There isn’t anything a pharmacy can do to mitigate the price.”

Fears over black market risks

Dr. Gooneratne also expressed concern that the price surge could fuel unsafe alternatives.

“This is how black market pharmaceuticals are propagated,” she said. “It means unscrupulous prescribing, the wrong kind of medication being given out, and, worse still, fakes or toxic products reaching the market.”

She described the emotional toll on patients who had been benefitting from the drug: “The first instinctive response from them has been panic and despair. It is so sad to see people who really wanted to improve their health now unable to continue because of costs.”

Wider concerns over regulation

Jersey-based medical consultant Dr. Rob Greig said his primary concern was not the price increase itself, but the lack of oversight in how people obtain the drug.

“The demand is there—people will probably pay more. The concern is how they access it,” he said, noting that some had already been ordering Mounjaro online before the price hike. “There is no regulation; nothing stops people from getting it however they choose,” he added. “If you have a patient with contraindications to these medications, they could become very sick.”