The in-person weight loss jab service will be trialled across 17 stores nationwide, including one in Greater Manchester
More than a million people in the UK are estimated to be currently using weight loss jabs(Image: PA)
A Boots pharmacy in Greater Manchester is among the first to offer customers an in-store service for weight loss drugs like Mounjaro and Wegovy. The service will allow people to pop in and buy jabs during their lunch breaks.
The pharmacy chain has launched the service as a trial initially across 17 stores nationwide, including in London, Cardiff and Edinburgh, offering the jabs on the high street for the first time. In Greater Manchester, the store in Stamford Quarter, Altrincham will first pilot the service.
Customers will be offered an in-person consultation with a pharmacist in a private consultation room, where their health and medical history will be assessed to see if they are eligible for treatment.
Weight loss medication has until now been largely only available through online prescriptions. The class of drugs is known as GLP-1 receptor agonists because they mimic the effects of the naturally occurring hormone called GLP-1, which helps to reduce appetite.
GPs in England are also allowed to prescribe Mounjaro on the NHS, but there is a strict eligibility criteria. The drug will only be prescribed to people with a BMI over 40 – or 37.5 in patients from a minority ethnic background – with at least four out of five of the following health problems linked to obesity:
Type 2 diabetesHigh blood pressureHeart and vascular diseaseHigh cholesterolObstructive sleep apnoea
Boots stores are to offer a high street weight loss jab service(Image: Getty Images)
Estimates suggest more than 1.5 million people in the UK are already taking weight loss drugs, which may have been prescribed through specialist weight loss services or via private prescription.
Jamie Kerruish, chief healthcare officer at Boots, said: “We know that people have different preferences for how they access healthcare services – some seeking online support and some wanting in person conversations with their local practitioner.
“The launch of our in-store weight loss treatment service alongside our digital offer delivered through Boots Online Doctor means we can now deliver convenient care to people both online or in person.”
He added: “Our weight loss treatment services are for anyone whose lives are affected by obesity. For people who are overweight or living with obesity, it can be hard to lose weight through diet and exercise alone.
“Weight loss treatment combined with 360 support to make lifestyle and behavioural changes, can be a powerful tool in helping people manage their weight and at Boots we are here for every step of our customers’ weight loss journeys.”
Boots has already been selling Mounjaro, made by Eli Lilly, and Novo Nordisk’s treatment Wegovy through its Boots Online Doctor service. Customers can book in-store appointments for the service online or on a walk-in basis at stores taking part in the pilot.
Below is a list of Boots stores offering the weight loss drug service:
Nottingham, Victoria Centre, NottinghamshireCardiff, Queen Street, WalesDurham, Market Place, County DurhamBelfast, Donegal Place, Northern IrelandEdinburgh, Princes Street, ScotlandNewcastle, Sidgate, Tyne and WearSt Albans, St Peters Street, HertfordshireLondon, Liverpool Steet StationLeicester, Fosse Park, LeicestershireBrighton, North Street, East SussexLondon, Piccadilly CircusDartford, Blue Water, KentAltrincham, Stamford Quarter, Trafford, Greater ManchesterChester-Le-Street, County DurhamMiddlesborough, Nunthorpe, North YorkshireBath, Southgate Centre, SomersetLisburn, Sprucefield, Northern Ireland