Worcestershire woman says Mounjaro helps her save money despite price hike

A woman who lost 40% of her body weight after taking the weight loss drug Mounjaro has told users to “look at price versus value”.

Last month, it was announced consumers would have to pay 170% more, which could have seen the cost of the highest dose increase from £122 to £330 per month.

Beverley Cuddy, 63, from Wyre Piddle in Worcestershire, said it had changed her life since taking her first dose in April 2023.

Asked about the price rise, she said the drug helped people save money in other areas of their life, adding: “Once you’re on this drug your shopping habits change completely.”

She said if she was a first time user again the price hike would “frighten” her but continued: “You no longer spend as much at the supermarkets, you no longer spend as much on takeaways.

“They’re not the reward you once thought they were. You have to look at price versus value.”

Ms Cuddy has lost about eight stone (51kg) since starting the medication, which makes you feel fuller for longer, and said she felt as though her life was on the “wind down” before it.

“I was spending an awful lot of time ill and in hospital, I was costing the NHS a fortune,” she said.

“I couldn’t get in the bath anymore before because my legs were so swollen and they couldn’t bend.

“I really had become someone who had to rely on other people because I had become unwell.”

Ms Cuddy admitted she felt fortunate to have been one of the first to sign up to the drug “when it was affordable”.

“It was still expensive but not compared to surgery,” she said.

“I think I was attempting death by chocolate, things were going badly so I just ate more but now I’m optimistic and I’m so much more healthy.”

Dr Leyla Hannbeck, head of the Independent Pharmacies Association, has warned the price hike could see more people use illegitimate websites.

She said: “We’ve heard because of the potential price rises people have been going online and we’ve heard Chinese websites mentioned that are selling Mounjaro, but you don’t know what sort of products these are.

“Please don’t rush online to whatever website to get hold of this product because they may not be legitimate and they may be quite dangerous.”

Dr Hannbeck advised people to seek advice from their pharmacist, who could prescribe a substitute drug to Mounjaro.