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Health insurer Vitality is first to offer UK members weight-loss jabs Health insurer Vitality is first to offer UK members weight-loss jabs
(about 3 hours later)
Company will give up to 20% off treatments such as Wegovy and Mounjaro through private coverCompany will give up to 20% off treatments such as Wegovy and Mounjaro through private cover
Vitality has become the first health insurer in the UK to offer customers discounted weight loss treatments for up to a year through its health cover.Vitality has become the first health insurer in the UK to offer customers discounted weight loss treatments for up to a year through its health cover.
The UK’s third-largest health insurer behind Bupa and Axa, with 1.9 million members, said it would offer discounts of up to 20% for medications such as Wegovy and Mounjaro – which are popular but pricey – to members, based on their body mass index (BMI) and weight-related health conditions. Vitality, the UK’s third-largest health insurer behind Bupa and Axa, with 1.9 million members, says it will offer discounts of up to 20% for medications such as Wegovy and Mounjaro – which are popular but pricey – to members, based on their body mass index (BMI) and weight-related health conditions.
Members can apply by completing their health profile through the Vitality app. If members have a BMI of 35 or over, they can apply for the new medication pathway, which includes coaching with a dietitian, through Second Nature, and discounted anti-obesity medications for up to 12 months based on their health risks. Members – 80% of whom are signed up through their employer – can apply by completing their health profile through the Vitality app. If they have a BMI of 35 or over, they can apply for the new medicated weight-loss pathway, which includes coaching with a dietitian and discounted anti-obesity drugs for up to 12 months based on their health risks. The scheme will be run by Second Nature, a digital weight-loss group.
The market is booming amid a new wave of anti-obesity drugs, called GLP-1s after the gut hormone that they mimic to suppress appetite. Injected by users once a week, they are effective in helping people lose weight and have also shown other health benefits in studies, such as reducing the risk of heart attacks and kidney disease. Other leading health insurers do not include anti-obesity drugs in their cover.
However, they come with a high price tag. The price of Wegovy, made by Denmark’s Novo Nordisk, starts at £139 for a month’s supply in the UK at online pharmacy prices, going up to £269 for higher doses. Wegovy, approved for use by the NHS in 2023, has been shown to achieve up to a 15% reduction in body weight after one year. Since 2023, Bupa has offered its customers a weight-loss management plan on a pay-as-you-go basis. After an appointment with a Bupa GP, Wegovy or Mounjaro may be prescribed, with regular check-ins and lifestyle coaching. It costs between £225 and £345 a month, depending on the dose, plus an initial consultation fee of £99.
Last year, Mounjaro, made by the US drug firm Eli Lilly, became the second obesity treatment to be approved for use on the NHS in the UK. It costs from £139 a month at online pharmacies, and showed weight loss of about 20% in clinical trials. Axa argues that private medical insurance covers unexpected illnesses and acute conditions, rather than chronic health problems. It says it welcomes the benefits of weight-loss treatments but adds that “there is still much to discover in how to best to use weight-loss injections to ensure effective, sustainable and healthy long-term weight loss”.
The use of anti-obesity drugs aims to build on Vitality’s existing weight loss programme, which uses reward-based incentives to encourage customers to adopt a healthier lifestyle through better diet and more exercise, with nearly half (48%) of enrolled members reaching their targets of about 5% weight loss. This can lead to a lower insurance excess, as well as other rewards. Aviva, the UK’s fourth-biggest health insurer, says its private medical insurance also provides cover for acute conditions – “that is, a disease, illness or injury that is likely to respond quickly to treatment”, it says.
Obesity alone is estimated to cost the NHS about £6.5bn a year and can lead to multiple health problems such as cardiovascular disease, type 2 diabetes and non-alcoholic fatty liver disease. “Treatment with drugs, such as Ozempic or semaglutide, for diabetes or weight loss, is not currently a benefit under our policies,” it adds.
These drugs, called GLP-1s after the gut hormone they mimic to suppress appetite, have proved hugely popular. Injected by users once a week, studies have also shown other health benefits, such as reducing the risk of heart attacks and kidney disease.
However, for most people they come with a hefty price tag. Wegovy, made by Denmark’s Novo Nordisk, starts at £139 for a month’s supply in the UK at online pharmacy prices, rising to £269 for higher doses. It was approved for use by the NHS in 2023 (but only for those fitting strict criteria), and has been shown to achieve up to a 15% reduction in body weight after one year.
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In the US, fewer than a fifth of large companies include coverage for weight loss drugs in their health insurance plans, according to a survey published in Health Affairs in October. Just over a year ago, Mounjaro, made by the US drug company Eli Lilly, became the second obesity treatment to be approved for use on the NHS in the UK. It costs from £139 a month at online pharmacies, and showed weight loss of about 20% in clinical trials.
Dr Katie Tryon, chief commercial director at Vitality, which is part of the South African insurance group Discovery Limited, said: “While some risk factors are reducing in the workplace, like smoking and alcohol … the ones that are coming out as ever increasing are the number of people living with obesity as well as mental health and MSK [musculoskeletal] issues.” The use of anti-obesity drugs aims to build on Vitality’s existing weight-loss programme, which uses reward-based incentives to encourage customers to adopt a healthier lifestyle through better diet and more exercise, with nearly half (48%) of enrolled members reaching their targets of about 5% weight loss. This can lead to a lower insurance excess, as well as other rewards.
Dr Katie Tryon, the chief commercial director at Vitality, says: “While some risk factors are reducing in the workplace, like smoking and alcohol … the ones that are coming out as ever-increasing are the number of people living with obesity, as well as mental health and musculoskeletal issues.”
Tryon says the company has been inundated with queries from members and non-clients about the weight-loss programme, which is due to go live in the next couple of months.