Intense demand for newly-available weight-loss pills will see a major “surge” in dangerous fakes flooding the UK, experts have warned.
Criminal gangs are widely expected to create cheap, counterfeit versions of Wegovy pills, after the “transformational” new oral treatment became available from pharmacists this week.
Fraudsters selling bogus medication on the black market can make their pills with brick dust or chalk and use paint to colour them, said health experts.
Non-obese people who want to lose weight may turn to cheaper and potentially unsafe fake slimming pills sold through social media, gyms and salons, they warned.
Pharmacists are braced for a surge of thousands of new patients coming forward for weight-loss medication after the Wegovy pills went on sale on Monday.
Online chemists have begun selling the 1.5mg starting dose at around £99 a month for existing patients, and £79 for new patients.
Fake pills are ‘bread and butter’ for criminal gangs
Some 97 per cent of pharmacies fear the shift from injections to pills will lead to an increase in fake or unlicensed weight-loss drugs, according to a survey by the National Pharmacy Association (NPA), which represents independent community chemists.
Pills are easier to counterfeit than jabs, said Bhavik Patel, a professor of clinical and bioanalytical chemistry at the University of Brighton. “For criminal gangs, pills are their bread and butter,” he told The i Paper.
The scale of the black market trade will “stretch” both the UK Border Force and the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency [MHRA] tasked with finding fakes, added Prof Patel.
Dr Ahsan Bhatti, pharmacist and owner of Quick Meds, warned of a “real surge in the black market for fake weight-loss pills” over the next three to six months.
“These pills will push demand for weight-loss medication even higher, and my worry is that more patients end up buying fakes online. That means more hospitalisations – and I fear, more deaths.”
Fake medications can contain smaller, incorrect doses, and can be topped up with potentially dangerous ingredients. Insulin and water have been used as replacements for existing weight-loss injections, said Prof Patel.
Counterfeiters have previously used brick dust, chalk and paint to fill out and colour all kinds of fake pills, the chemistry expert added.
Cost may push people to fakes
“If accessibility or cost for pills becomes hard for people, there is greater risk of turning to the black market,” said Prof Patel.
“Unfortunately, there may be some people who aren’t eligible but want to change their appearance – they may look for alternative sources online.”
There had been hopes that Wegovy pills would help bring the cost down of weight loss drugs. They have been available in injection form for between £100 and £300 a month, depending on the dose.
However, Novo Nordisk has revealed that the pill is “not cheaper” to manufacture than their injections, dampening hopes that tablets will cost significantly less.
Huge demand for the new pills is a “positive thing” if it widens access for people who need the medication, said pharmacist Thorrun Govind. “Not everyone is comfortable with jabs.”
But Govind is worried that a surge of new people interested in the weight-loss drugs for the first time may look for cheaper prices.
And they may not understand there are strict eligibility requirements around body mass index (BMI). Weight must be verified by a registered prescriber in a “two-way” consultation, she said.
“I worry about messages on social media about getting into shape, about being beach-body ready and so on,” said Govind.
“They may drive people who don’t need the medication to find the pills by illegitimate routes.”
Scammers are cloning pharmacy websites
Counterfeit weight-loss jabs have typically been sold online for 20 to 30 per cent less – often using fake websites, said Dr Bhatti.
He expects to see the same for weight loss pills. “The saving is usually modest by design. If it looked too good to be true, nobody would fall for it.”
Buyers should be wary of any weight-loss drugs offered without eligibility checks, experts warned. Prices significantly lower than those offered by regulated online pharmacies are another red flag.
One in 10 online pharmacies have had their websites or social media accounts cloned by scammers selling fake weight-loss jabs, the NPA said.
Dr Bhatti said his own company’s website had been cloned by scammers. The Government should back the creation of a new ‘pharmacy’ domain name to help identify regulated pharmacies, he said.
More than 6,500 fake or unlicensed weight-loss drugs have been seized by UK authorities over the past three years, according to MHRA figures from earlier this year.
Northampton Police recently raided an illegal operation on a country estate – capturing another 12,000 unlicensed weight-loss jabs. But the true scale of the black market is unknown.
An MHRA spokesperson said it was “continuously monitoring trends” in the fake weight-loss drug market and would “remain vigilant to emerging threats”.
The regulator said it works with law enforcement and customs agencies – both in the UK and internationally – to disrupt criminal supply chains.
Novo Nordisk said it was taking action to tackle fakes, including sharing information about supply chains with law enforcement.
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