Eli Lilly will sharply increase the UK list price of its diabetes and weight-loss drug Mounjaro from September, as US President Donald Trump intensifies pressure on drugmakers to lower prices at home while raising them abroad.
The price rise means Mounjaro’s highest-dose monthly supply will jump from £122 ($160) to £330 ($448) – a 170 per cent increase. Lower doses will also see steep hikes, with prices moving from £92-£122 ($125-$160) to £133-£330 ($181-$448) a month, the company said.
UK access and private costs
Lilly stressed the increase would not affect patients covered by the National Health Service (NHS), which has negotiated its own discounted rate for those prescribed the drug for type 2 diabetes or obesity.
But for private buyers, who account for the majority of users in the UK, costs are set to rise significantly. Around 1.5 million people are currently on weight-loss drugs in Britain, with more than half taking Mounjaro. Nine in ten of these patients are believed to be paying privately through pharmacies or online services, according to the BBC.
Retailers may still negotiate discounts from the list price, so the full impact on consumers remains uncertain.
The price hike comes as Trump presses global pharmaceutical companies to cut US drug costs by late September. In July, he sent letters to 17 firms, including Lilly, demanding proposals to lower American prices.
The administration has revived the “most favoured nation” policy, which pegs US drug prices to those abroad, and threatened tariffs on pharmaceutical imports.
US drug prices are on average two to three times higher than in other wealthy nations, and up to ten times higher in some cases, according to the Rand Corporation. The White House argues that Americans have long subsidised lower prices overseas.
Lilly said it supported the principle of “fairer cost-sharing” but did not endorse a direct “most favoured nation” formula. Instead, it said aligning prices more closely across advanced economies would allow US costs to come down without undermining access elsewhere.
‘Below European average’ at launch
Lilly said Mounjaro had been launched in the UK at a price “significantly below” the European average to accelerate NHS access at a time of limited global availability.
“With changes in the environment and new clinical evidence supporting the value of Mounjaro, we are now aligning the list price more consistently to ensure fair global contributions to the cost of innovation,” the company said in a statement.
The weekly injection, whose active ingredient tirzepatide is also marketed as Zepbound for obesity, works by helping patients feel full. Studies show it can reduce body weight by as much as 20 per cent.
Lilly said it was reviewing Mounjaro pricing with other governments and expected to make similar adjustments in certain markets from September 1.
The company continues to oppose Trump’s proposed tariffs on drug imports, warning they would raise costs, limit access and undermine US leadership in biopharmaceuticals. In recent months, Lilly has announced new investment in American manufacturing sites, moves it says demonstrate its commitment to domestic production.
