Blockbuster weight-loss jabs that currently cost up to £200 a month could soon be sold for as little as £20.

Semaglutide—the appetite-suppressing ingredient in Wegovy and Ozempic—has been hailed as a game-changer in the war on obesity.

But with NHS access limited, hundreds of thousands of Britons have turned to private online pharmacies, paying eye-watering sums for the weekly jab.

That could all change from early 2026, when the global patent held by Danish drug giant Novo Nordisk begins to expire in swathes of the world.

Competing companies will have the chance to create their own ‘generic’ versions, which could lead to a price drop of up to 90 percent, as stated by Medicines UK, the representative for manufacturers.

Dozens of companies have already lined up to cash in.

Even though Novo Nordisk’s patent in the UK remains valid until 2031, specialists caution that cheaper imports might infiltrate Britain, sparking an expanding grey market for weight loss injections.

The grey market consists of unregulated products, often sourced from international websites or sold by social media vendors, that skip UK safety protocols and pose a risk of being counterfeit.

This injection, which has restricted availability within the NHS, has been purchased by hundreds of thousands in the UK via online pharmacies, with prices ranging from £100 to £200 monthly.

Patents are set to expire as early as next year in India, Canada, China, Brazil, and Turkey—nations accounting for 40 percent of the global population, including a third of the adults with obesity.

According to Robert Russell-Pavier, the director of policy and economics at Medicines UK, the emergence of generic weight loss injections could represent a significant opportunity for enhancing public health.

Generic medicines typically cost 70 to 90 per cent less than their branded equivalents, and competition can force big drug-makers to slash prices – sometimes even before patents expire, according to Medicines UK.

Mr Russell-Pavier told the Daily Mail: ‘We advise against purchasing from overseas pharmacies, or travelling abroad to buy cut-price jabs.

‘Whether prescribed and taken in the UK or elsewhere, access to semaglutide should be through a prescription. 

‘Those taking the treatment should be regularly checking in with the doctor or other healthcare professionals that prescribed it. 

‘However, the advent of generics will create competition, and it’s likely we’ll see a significant reduction in prices here too.’

Ultimately, this will mean the NHS can afford to treat more patients, he added. 

Obesity already costs the NHS an estimated £6.5 billion a year, with more than one million hospital admissions in England linked to the condition annually. Officials warn that without effective interventions, that bill could soar to £9.7 billion by 2050, placing an unsustainable burden on frontline services.

According to Medicines UK, generics contain the same active ingredients as brand-name drugs and act in the same way on patients.

They may differ in size, colour or shape, and can include different non-active ingredients such as starches, sugars or colourings – but none of these changes affect how they work in the body.

They also meet exactly the same standards of quality, safety and efficacy as all other licensed drugs.

David Wallace, senior analyst at pharmaceutical firm Citeline, said semaglutide competition ‘is expected to be very healthy’.

He added: ‘Since generic medicinal products contain well-known, safe and effective substances, the pre-clinical tests and clinical trials performed by the originator are not repeated, which is why they are cheaper.’

Generic medicines are manufactured in inspected plants under strict Good Manufacturing Practice rules – standards set and enforced in Britain by the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency.

Similar frameworks are policed by the Food and Drug Administration in the US and the European Medicines Agency in the EU.

The World Health Organisation also publishes GMP guidelines, which many other countries adopt, to ensure medicines are made to the same high quality wherever they are produced.

The framework is designed to guarantee that every batch of medicine is made to the same high quality, covering everything from factory hygiene to testing and record-keeping.

Within the past month, several pharmaceutical firms have confirmed plans to apply for licences to sell generic versions of semaglutide.

Last week, global drug company Adalvo announced it was preparing to offer semaglutide injections, from the lowest Wegovy dose of 0.25mg up to the highest, at 2mg.

Swiss generics giant Sandoz also revealed plans to launch unbranded semaglutide next year, at discounts of up to 70 per cent compared to branded versions. Its chief executive Richard Saynor told the Financial Times that cuts of ’60 or 70 per cent of the list price’ were realistic.

In a further blow to Novo Nordisk, the European Patent Office recently overturned an attempt to extend its semaglutide patent until 2033.

The challenge was brought by two generics firms – Israeli company Teva and Spanish outfit Galenicum Health – underlining the growing interest in semaglutide from the wider sector.

A spokesman for Novo Nordisk told the Daily Mail: ‘These comments are speculative and have been made by individuals representing the generic medicines industry, who have no direct knowledge or influence over the pricing of our medicines. 

‘Novo Nordisk has patents over semaglutide that will be valid in the UK until 2031.

‘We have previously confirmed that we currently have no plans of changing our offering in the UK. 

‘Our focus is on supporting patients, and we are committed to securing the broadest possible access for patients to our innovative medicines.’

In Britain, experts warn the NHS rollout of weight-loss jabs has already created a ‘two-tier system’.

A report published in May by the Tony Blair Institute for Global Change noted that obesity rates are about 15 per cent higher in the most deprived areas compared to the wealthiest.

Yet because NHS access is limited and private jabs cost hundreds of pounds a month, it is largely the better-off who are getting them. ‘The arrival of these drugs – available predominantly to people who can pay – is only deepening those divides,’ the report said.

It also highlighted that online pharmacies are failing to serve some vulnerable groups, such as patients with learning disabilities or severe mental illness, who may need a more personalised service.

Health chiefs have meanwhile urged caution over misuse. Doctors say they are treating rising numbers of slim women who have lied about their weight to online chemists to gain access. 

Senior medics warn A&E units are now seeing casualties from appetite-suppressing jabs on a daily basis.

UK law forbids the sale of such drugs without a prescription.

Semaglutide injections can help users shed up to 33lb (15.3kg) on average over 68 weeks. They work by mimicking a natural hormone that tricks the brain into thinking the stomach is full, cutting appetite and driving weight loss.