BRITAIN will be “fat free” within a decade, paving the way for tax cuts worth billions of pounds, Wes Streeting declared yesterday.
The Health Secretary told The Sun he is on a mission to slash levies by giving more people access to drugs such as Ozempic and Mounjaro.
Jon BondThe Health Secretary Wes Streeting and The Sun’s Noa Hoffman[/caption]
Mr Streeting said: “The jabs are a route not just to lower weight, but lower taxes.”
Obesity-related illnesses cost the NHS a whopping £6billion every year.
Currently people with a BMI of 35 or more — or 30 but with a health condition — can be prescribed jabs on the NHS through specialist weight-management services.
But for those who do not meet the criteria, accessing the injections can set household finances back hundreds of pounds a month.
The Health Secretary said: “Not everyone in this country has £2,500 a year to spend on weight-loss jabs.
“For Labour MPs like myself, this strikes at the heart of the fairness principle of the NHS, which is supposed to be available for everyone based on need, not ability to pay.
“We’re looking to seriously scale up access to weight-loss jabs for everyone who needs them.”
NHS spending watchdog the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence believes this could lift swathes of people out of the “obese” category and get them back to work.
It estimates fat jabs could boost the economy by 257,000 working days — worth £35.6million per year.
Chief exec Dr Sam Roberts said: “The cost of inaction is simply too high.
“Prioritising prevention is a win-win for the health of the nation and the economy.”
This proactive approach to tackling obesity-related illnesses forms part of Mr Streeting’s landmark ten-year health plan, which will also see the NHS become a neighbourhood health service.
Around 250 to 300 local health centres will be built, which will open six days a week and 12 hours a day.
They will be staffed by doctors, nurses, dentists, pharmacists, health visitors, weight-loss specialists and even job advisers.
Medics will be encouraged to go door-to-door to spot illnesses early.
And patients will be offered scans, check-ups, straightforward treatment, and broader life help.
AI will be used to answer patient questions in the NHS app, and record data and write letters for doctors.
Jon BondWes Streeting told The Sun he’s on a mission to slash levies by giving more people access to drugs such as Ozempic and Mounjaro[/caption]
The aim is to ease pressure on hospitals, which have been buckling under demand.
As part of the ten-year plan, Mr Streeting has vowed to fix staff shortages by hiring more doctors, encouraging medical training and rewriting GP contracts to improve funding.
Dentists will have to work in the NHS for at least three years after qualifying before they can go private.
And more cash will be funnelled into working class areas to shrink the health gap between rich and poor.
YOU WIN ON SMOKE BAN
SUN readers have won the argument for keeping pub gardens smoker-friendly, Wes Streeting said yesterday.
We revealed Labour’s plans for an outdoor ban last year. It sparked a public backlash and political U-turn.
Wes joked: “I’ve lost the battle.
“So I’ll have to keep inhaling smoke in the beer garden.”
He will push supermarkets and restaurants to sell healthier food and shift discounts on to fruit and veg, insisting: “It’s nudge, not nanny.”
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