C+D has learned that Well, Superdrug and Boots will all offer the drug to their patients or have already begun doing so.
It comes after manufacturer Novo Nordisk announced this week (September 4) that the semaglutide injection, known as Wegovy, is now available for use in the UK “through a controlled and limited launch”.
Read more: Pharmacies pioneer private Wegovy service as drug sees UK launch
The drug can now be accessed by eligible patients in specialist NHS weight management services and privately though “a registered healthcare professional”, the manufacturer said.
While a Well spokesperson could only confirm that the multiple “will be offering a private service” including the drug and that it “will be online soon”, both Superdrug and Boots told C+D that it was available for patients who meet the criteria through their services as of Monday (September 4).
Wait list
However, both Superdrug and Boots highlighted that the drug will not be available to all patients immediately due to limited stock.
A Boots spokesperson told C+D that Boots Online Doctor is only offering Wegovy to patients who are currently using its weight loss treatment service, while the drug is also available at the multiple for those with an NHS prescription.
Superdrug is enforcing similar rules and currently only “contacting patients who had previously registered interest in the service” in the order that they did so, it said.
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Superdrug Online Doctor is “prescribing and dispensing a limited supply” of Wegovy due to “constrained manufacturer supply”, it added.
Manufacturer Novo Nordisk has said that it expects that supply of the drug will be “constrained for the foreseeable future” and that “a proportion” of the medicine has been ringfenced for NHS use only.
How much does it cost?
The Boots weight loss treatment service that includes Wegovy offers an online consultation and one month’s prescription if appropriate from £199, as well as aftercare and support, the multiple said.
And Superdrug told C+D that a month’s supply of Wegovy “will cost between £195-£295”.
Read more: DH and MHRA ban wholesalers from exporting or hoarding semaglutide
A spokesperson for Lloydspharmacy said that they were unable to provide comment, while Rowlands did not respond to a request for comment.
On Monday, pharmacy-based clinical service package provider Pharmadoctor announced that Wegovy is now available as a treatment option in its private weight management service.
It claimed that its “partner pharmacies” are the “first private UK service providers” to offer Wegovy to patients in an in-person clinical setting.
