Studies currently underway in the United Kingdom are examining outcomes which include employment status, work productivity, and sickness absence. For example, the industry funded SURMOUNT-REAL study will examine employment status and work productivity outcomes alongside other factors. The Government funded Scotland CardioMetabolic Impact Study will include an assessment of how improved health through weight loss may help people remain in work and reduce sick leave.

The Government recognises that obesity is associated with significant labour market challenges, including reduced workforce participation and increased sickness absence. The Government remains committed to monitoring emerging evidence to better understand the full range of health and economic benefits associated with obesity treatments. Indeed, the evidence base for the impact of health interventions on employment outcomes is rapidly growing, with very robust evidence on the impact of bariatric surgery and Talking Therapies.

Supporting people to achieve and maintain weight loss over the long term is a core principle of National Health Service weight management services. National, integrated care board, and local authority commissioned services combine behavioural support, healthier eating, physical activity, and relapse prevention to help people sustain weight loss and improve their long-term health.

Nationally commissioned services, such as the NHS Digital Weight Management Programme and the suite of Healthier You programmes, such as the NHS Behavioural Support for Obesity Prescribing, the NHS Diabetes Prevention Programme, and the NHS Type 2 Diabetes Path to Remission, all place a strong emphasis on supporting long term weight maintenance. These services are designed not only to help people achieve and sustain weight loss and a healthy weight, but also to prevent, improve, or manage obesity related long-term conditions, including reducing the risk of developing type 2 diabetes and supporting remission for those already living with the condition.

The NHS continues to evaluate and develop its weight management services to ensure they reflect the latest clinical evidence and support people to achieve sustainable improvements in their health and reduce future demand on NHS services.

NHS England has established the National Obesity Audit (NOA) to improve understanding of weight management services across England. The audit analyses data collected from hospitals, community settings, and general practices on weight management services and interventions commissioned, or funded, by local authorities and the National Health Service. The NOA currently publishes information on specialist weight management services and bariatric surgery and is continuing to work towards a comprehensive picture of obesity care, including service access, outcomes, and inequalities, to support service improvement and development.

The Obesity Pathway Innovation Programme evaluation has been commissioned independently through the National Institute for Health and Care Research and is entirely independent of Eli Lilly and Company. The evaluation team is currently working with funded projects to understand service delivery models and planned data collection, with the final evaluation framework being developed by Autumn 2026. The findings of this independent evaluation will inform national decision-making, including future evidence requirements, and the outputs of the independent evaluation will be disseminated and made publicly available as appropriate.

The Government announcement on 27 June 2026, titled Pioneering projects to transform obesity care, backed by £85 million from government and industry, was a press notice announcing the 12 successful projects funded through the Obesity Pathway Innovation Programme. The quoted individuals were identified by their names, organisation, and roles.

Press notices are intended to communicate Government announcements and are not scientific or academic publications. The affiliations of those quoted were set out in the announcement, enabling readers to understand the capacity in which comments were provided.

The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) makes recommendations on whether new medicines should be routinely funded by the National Health Service based on an assessment of clinical and cost effectiveness. When assessing treatments, NICE looks at how well they work and whether they represent good value for NHS money. Its standard approach focuses on NHS costs and does not include wider economic factors such as the impact on sickness absence or workforce productivity.

NICE has recommended a number of medicines licensed for the treatment of obesity for use on the NHS using its standard approach to evaluations, and those treatments are now available for the treatment of NHS patients in line with NICE’s guidance.

The Obesity Pathway Innovation Programme includes evaluation activity to assess programme outcomes, funded from within the programme's budget. The programme's 12 funded projects will generate real-world evidence on innovative approaches to obesity care, supported by a national evaluation and Community of Practice to share learning across the NHS. The findings will help inform future obesity services and commissioning decisions.

Decisions on eligibility for procedures are a matter for local National Health Service commissioners and clinicians, taking account of relevant National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) guidance and the individual needs of the patient. The Department expects access to NHS services to be based on clinical need and informed clinical judgement.

NICE has produced a guideline on joint replacement that covers care before, during, and after a planned knee, hip, or shoulder replacement. The guideline does not make any recommendations on the use of body mass index (BMI) thresholds in determining eligibility for orthopaedic procedures.

As with all surgery, BMI should be considered as part of a holistic, personalised perioperative evaluation of the risks versus clinical need for joint replacement surgery of an individual patient. However, BMI should not be considered in isolation and in and of itself should not act as a barrier to surgery.

As part of the Elective Reform Plan, we expanded Advice and Guidance services, which enable general practitioners and other clinicians to get quick specialist advice from consultants about non-urgent patient care, helping decide on treatment plans, test results, or if a hospital referral is needed. From October 2026, providers are expected to ensure that all appropriate requests and referrals, excluding urgent suspect cancer, flow through a Single Point of Access model, acting as a single ‘front door’ to support clinical triage to the most appropriate service or outcome, supporting faster specialist assessment and meaning clearer next steps for patients.

All providers of healthcare, including independent sector providers, are regulated by the Care Quality Commission and follow a set of fundamental standards of safety and quality, below which care should never fall. The safety of all patients, whether they are treated in the NHS or the independent sector, is a top priority for the Government.

Decisions on eligibility for procedures are a matter for local National Health Service commissioners and clinicians, taking account of relevant National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) guidance and the individual needs of the patient. The Department expects access to NHS services to be based on clinical need and informed clinical judgement.

NICE has produced a guideline on joint replacement that covers care before, during, and after a planned knee, hip, or shoulder replacement. The guideline does not make any recommendations on the use of body mass index (BMI) thresholds in determining eligibility for orthopaedic procedures.

As with all surgery, BMI should be considered as part of a holistic, personalised perioperative evaluation of the risks versus clinical need for joint replacement surgery of an individual patient. However, BMI should not be considered in isolation and in and of itself should not act as a barrier to surgery.

As part of the Elective Reform Plan, we expanded Advice and Guidance services, which enable general practitioners and other clinicians to get quick specialist advice from consultants about non-urgent patient care, helping decide on treatment plans, test results, or if a hospital referral is needed. From October 2026, providers are expected to ensure that all appropriate requests and referrals, excluding urgent suspect cancer, flow through a Single Point of Access model, acting as a single ‘front door’ to support clinical triage to the most appropriate service or outcome, supporting faster specialist assessment and meaning clearer next steps for patients.

All providers of healthcare, including independent sector providers, are regulated by the Care Quality Commission and follow a set of fundamental standards of safety and quality, below which care should never fall. The safety of all patients, whether they are treated in the NHS or the independent sector, is a top priority for the Government.

The information requested on dopamine agonists is not held centrally nor held in the format requested and could only be obtained at disproportionate cost.

Dopamine agonists encompass a range of medicines authorised for the management of Parkinson’s disease, restless legs syndrome and endocrine disorders in the United Kingdom.

The product information approved by the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) are designed to support safe use of the medicine by providing essential information and supporting discussions between patients and the healthcare professionals providing their care.

The MHRA continuously monitors the safety of medicines on the UK market to ensure that warnings and side-effects listed in the product information accurately reflect the available data. The MHRA is currently reviewing whether further action is needed to raise awareness of the existing warnings about impulse control disorders with dopamine agonists.

The Department commissioned a rapid review with the Obesity Policy Research Unit in 2025 which found that overweight and obesity are associated with labour market outcomes such as sickness absence. Evidence indicates that individuals living with obesity take around four additional sick days per year compared to those of a healthy weight, contributing to an estimated £4.9 billion annual loss in workplace productivity from absenteeism alone.

However, the Department does not produce specific assessments of the impact of weight loss or access to weight loss medication on sickness absence or the potential savings to the economy from reductions in sickness absence associated with obesity treatment. The Government will continue to monitor emerging evidence to better understand the full benefits of these treatments, including through forthcoming studies in the United Kingdom examining the effects of weight loss medicines on health, employment and work-related outcomes.

The Department commissioned a rapid review with the Obesity Policy Research Unit in 2025 which found that overweight and obesity are associated with labour market outcomes such as sickness absence. Evidence indicates that individuals living with obesity take around four additional sick days per year compared to those of a healthy weight, contributing to an estimated £4.9 billion annual loss in workplace productivity from absenteeism alone.

However, the Department does not produce specific assessments of the impact of weight loss or access to weight loss medication on sickness absence or the potential savings to the economy from reductions in sickness absence associated with obesity treatment. The Government will continue to monitor emerging evidence to better understand the full benefits of these treatments, including through forthcoming studies in the United Kingdom examining the effects of weight loss medicines on health, employment and work-related outcomes.

The Department commissioned a rapid review with the Obesity Policy Research Unit in 2025 which found that overweight and obesity are associated with labour market outcomes such as sickness absence. Evidence indicates that individuals living with obesity take around four additional sick days per year compared to those of a healthy weight, contributing to an estimated £4.9 billion annual loss in workplace productivity from absenteeism alone.

However, the Department does not produce specific assessments of the impact of weight loss or access to weight loss medication on sickness absence or the potential savings to the economy from reductions in sickness absence associated with obesity treatment. The Government will continue to monitor emerging evidence to better understand the full benefits of these treatments, including through forthcoming studies in the United Kingdom examining the effects of weight loss medicines on health, employment and work-related outcomes.