Lilly-backed scheme aims to help UK improve obesity care

Tens of thousands of NHS patients living with obesity could get help to reduce their weight through a partnership between the UK government and pharma group Eli Lilly.

Up to £85 million ($114 million) is being made available by the government and drugmaker under the public-private partnership, which aims to deliver new models of care for obesity – helped by a competition in which NHS organisations from all four UK nations will be able to put forward projects for consideration.

Those found most compelling will get funding for pilot studies, to see if they should be delivered at scale across the health service. The hope is that they will make weight management care easier to provide, through "new routes like digital platforms, local community-based access, and pharmacies," according to the government.

That ties in with the recently published NHS 10-Year Plan, which revolves around shifting care from hospital to community, from analogue to digital, and from sickness to prevention.

"New ways of accessing support to tackle obesity, such as through pharmacies or with help from digital tools, could be transformational for people's quality of life, and for society – allowing individuals to more easily manage their weight and freeing them from ill-health that holds them back in daily life – while reducing the strain on our NHS," commented Science and Technology Secretary Peter Kyle.

Supporting people living with obesity and those who are overweight is estimated to cost the NHS around £11 billion directly every year, with a wider cost to society of £74 billion.

The UK government will contribute up to £50 million of new investment into the scheme, with Lilly contributing up to £35 million of grant funding. It is part of a commitment made by Lilly at the UK's international investment summit last October that could generate up to £279 million of investment.

Lilly said it has worked with the Department of Science, Innovation, and Technology (DSIT) and Innovate UK on the design and guidelines for the competition, encouraging submissions to "consider elements such as alignment with clinical standards, resource efficiency, accessibility, and scalability."

"At Lilly, we are deeply committed to addressing the complex health challenge of obesity, and we are pleased to collaborate with the UK government and NHS partners," said Prof Rachel Batterham, Lilly's head of international medical affairs.

"Together, we aim to build an evidence base that could transform health outcomes for people living with obesity," she added.

A central part of this programme will be finding new ways to deliver obesity care that are accessible to everyone who can benefit from them, regardless of their background, according to the partners.