The key facts: 1 million new NHS patients eligible for semaglutide

The NHS announced last month that 1.2 million more patients will be eligible for treatment with semaglutide – the revolutionary obesity and diabetes drug behind Wegovy and Ozempic.¹

The announcement comes after NICE, the UK's health guidance body, recommended semaglutide as a treatment option for people living with heart disease.

This is welcome news for the many UK patients who could benefit from the drug. Under current NHS guidelines, Wegovy is only available as a treatment for Class II or III obesity and has strict eligibility criteria.² In the initial rollout, only around 50,000 people were expected to be offered treatment.³

However, when the new guidelines roll out this summer, eligibility will be expanded to include those with heart problems and excess weight, not just obesity.¹ That means many more people could access treatment earlier – before their weight potentially leads to more serious health problems.

That's the headline news. But what does this mean for patients like you? Let's dig deeper and uncover the key facts.

The new NHS semaglutide rollout: what you need to know

This is the first time Wegovy has been made generally available on the NHS to people who are overweight

Under current NHS guidelines, Wegovy is available as a weight loss treatment for people:²

• With a body mass index (BMI) of 35 or more
• With certain weight-related health conditions
  
  

While allowances are made for those of certain high-risk ethnic backgrounds,² the criteria remain strict compared to those followed by private healthcare providers.

Under the new initiative, however, the drug will be offered to those with a BMI of 27 or greater, provided they've previously had:¹

• A heart attack
• A stroke
• A serious circulation problem in the legs (peripheral arterial disease)
  
  

A BMI of 27 is classed as overweight, but not obese. This marks the first time the drug will be generally available on the NHS for people not living with obesity.

This isn't the first time semaglutide has been recommended in the UK for heart health

In July 2024, the MHRA approved semaglutide to reduce the risk of heart problems for those living with overweight or obesity.⁴

That came after the results of the SELECT clinical trial, which found that semaglutide is effective at reducing deaths from heart attacks and stroke.⁵

The MHRA's approval meant that private healthcare providers could offer Wegovy to those with cardiovascular disease and a BMI of 27 or more.

However, until now, there hasn't been an equivalent treatment option on the NHS. The new NICE guidelines are, in effect, a response to both the MHRA's approval and the findings of the SELECT trial.

The treatment will be offered alongside lifestyle recommendations and – potentially – other drugs

It's well established that Wegovy is most effective for weight loss when prescribed alongside healthy lifestyle interventions.⁶

So, it's unsurprising that the NHS announcement confirms that the new treatment option will include 'a healthy diet and increased physical activity'.¹

The announcement also confirms that 'other commonly used drugs' can be offered alongside semaglutide, including anti-hypertensives and statins.¹ That's good news for those with heart problems who could benefit from a multi-pronged approach.

For now, the new rollout only applies to England

Unfortunately for those in other parts of the UK, the new semaglutide rollout only applies to patients in England – at least for now.¹

However, previous rollouts of semaglutide have later been adopted in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland following their own reviews. So, we may well see access expand across the UK in time.

What Semapen says: our take on the news

'Wegovy seems to be the gift that keeps giving', reacted Semapen founder Professor David Kerrigan.

'NICE has endorsed emerging clinical evidence that GLP-1 agonist drugs have a strong protective effect on the heart, even in those without obesity. What's more, this effect seems to be completely independent of weight loss.

'Further work is needed to tease out the exact mechanism. However, it's thought likely that Wegovy reduces inflammation within the walls of blood vessels that are critical to keeping heart muscle healthy.

'This could, in theory, reduce the risk of fatty plaques in the coronary artery wall from rupturing and blocking off the heart's circulation – the usual precursor to a major heart attack'.

Semapen is a specialist UK provider of clinically supervised weight loss treatments. As a subscriber, you'll unlock tailored support from real obesity experts, plus weight tracking and more in our weight loss app. You can find out if you're eligible today by taking our quick online consultation.

Sources

1. NHS England (2026) Over a million people could be offered Wegovy to cut heart attack and stroke risk on the NHS [news story]. Retrieved from https://www.england.nhs.uk/2026/04/million-people-offered-wegovy-cut-heart-attack-stroke-risk/

2. NHS England (n.d.) Weight management injections. Retrieved from https://www.england.nhs.uk/ourwork/prevention/obesity/medicines-for-obesity/weight-management-injections/

3. House of Lords Library (2024) Weight management: Diet and medication. UK Parliament. Retrieved from https://lordslibrary.parliament.uk/weight-management-diet-and-medication/

4. Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (2024)  MHRA approves GLP –1 receptor agonist semaglutide to reduce risk of serious heart problems in obese or overweight adults [press release]. GOV.UK. Retrieved from https://www.gov.uk/government/news/mhra-approves-glp-1-receptor-agonist-semaglutide-to-reduce-risk-of-serious-heart-problems-in-obese-or-overweight-adults

5. Lincoff, A.M. et al. (2023) "Semaglutide and Cardiovascular Outcomes in Obesity without Diabetes" The New England Journal of Medicine, 389(24) https://doi.org/10.1056/NEJMoa2307563

6. Wilding, J.P.H. et al. (2021) "Once-Weekly Semaglutide in Adults with Overweight or Obesity" The New England Journal of Medicine, 384(11) https://doi.org/10.1056/NEJMoa2032183

This article was last reviewed Tuesday 5 May 2026.